Beholder
by Yoko Black
Summary: After learning his K-9 partner is retiring, Naruto adopted a pet dog. He named it Kurogane. Unfortunately for him, Kurogane's real name is Sasuke Uchiha, but Naruto sees him as nothing more than a dog.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: Beholder**

 **Rating: T-M**

 **Summary: After learning his K-9 partner is retiring, Naruto adopted a pet dog. He named it Kurogane. Unfortunately for him, Kurogane's real name is Sasuke Uchiha, but Naruto sees him as nothing more than a dog.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.**

 **AN: I've read several fanstories where the characters are animals or have animal like appearance, so I decided to write my own. Let me know what you think!**

 **Chapter 1**

If anyone asked Sasuke Uchiha how it began, he would say it started with a dare. He was the second son of a rich business consultant and an interior designer. It came as no shock that his parents had shown disinterest in him as his brother Itachi quickly flew through school, leaving Sasuke behind to try to catch up. At the age of fourteen, Itachi graduated high school and entered university to get his business degree so he would one day take over the company when Fugaku died.

He went to the most prestigious school in the city, Konoha Academy. He had a group of people that he supposed he could call friends, but he mostly called them annoyances. They were children of other rich parents that congragated at the were children of other rich parents that congregated at the school. Sasuke only associated with them because his father wanted him to get closer to them so he could get closer to their parents. Yet another reason why Sasuke hated his father.

Sasuke had graduated at age sixteen and entered university a year later, but instead of business, he went into modeling. Sasuke knew he had a gorgeous body. Uchiha genetics always won through, and it didn't help that his mother had been a model herself before she got pregnant with Itachi.

Curious at his parents' constant dismissal of his existance, Sasuke began to rebel against his parents' authority. He didn't care what he did or who he hurt as long as it infuriated his parents. If the cops arrested him, it was just an added bonus to his rap sheet. Drugs, alcohol, anything that would infuriated Fugaku, Sasuke did. Fugaku would lecture at Sasuke about sullying the Uchiha name. Sasuke would half listen and go out to party.

Sasuke's rebellion was a subject of many fights in the Uchiha household, some of which would lead Mikato leaving for the night.

"Do you want our parents to divorce?!" yelled Itachi. Seventeen year old Sasuke just lay on his bed smoking a cigarette without an open window to filter out the smoke. "Don't you care about what we think? Do you enjoy our suffering?"

"Like you're suffering," said Sasuke.

At a young age, Sasuke had admired Itachi. Itachi had been smart, athletic and somehow found time in his busy schedule to play with Sasuke where their father failed to do. Itachi would help him with his homework, helped him understand subjects that were difficult for him and comforted him when he was hurt.

But then Fugaku started training Itachi to take over the company, and Itachi started spending less time with Sasuke until the only time Sasuke saw Itachi would be at dinner or whenever he got home after work. Over time, Sasuke grew to hate Itachi for ignoring him and started rebelling. He hated Itachi for being smarter than him and for stealing all of his father's attention. Childish anger, he knew, but not even his logical and mature mind could shake the anger he felt toward his brother. Nothing Sasuke did turned his father's head, even when he graduated early like Itachi and had the highest marks in the school.

Itachi looked at Sasuke sadly.

"Is that what you think, Sasuke?" he said. "Sasuke, do you have any idea what you're putting our parents through?"

"Like they give a shit about me," said Sasuke crushing his cigarette in an ashtray.

He turned toward the window and the light glinted off the various piercings on him. Aside from the four earrings on both ears, he had a nose ring on his right nostril, a lip ring on the left side and an eyebrow pierced along with a barbell in his tongue. He also had other piercings under his clothes plus a tattoo on his shoulder of three tomoe and tiny kanji surrounding it. Of course he got the piercings to piss his parents off and the tattoo was of his own design.

"Sasuke..."

Sasuke's phone rang and he answered it.

"Yeah?"

 _"Hey, Sasuke,"_ said Suigestu, one of Sasuke's 'friends'. _"Want to hang?"_

"Sure. Where at?"

 _"Usual spot. See you there."_

"Hn."

Sasuke hung up and turned to Itachi, who was looking at him with an angry annoyed look. Without a word, Sasuke grabbed his jacket and left. He could hear his parents arguing in his father's study, more than likely about him. The maids had all gone home for the night and only the night butler was around in case they needed anything for the night.

"Anything I can get you, sir?" asked the butler as Sasuke left.

"No, and don't bother informing my parents about me leaving," said Sasuke. "It's not like they care."

Grabbing the keys to his Porche, Sasuke walked to the garage. Starting up his car, he drove it out and went to meet his "friends". Their usual meeting place was a rock landmark in the forest. His 'friends' consisted of Suigestu Hozuki, his 'girlfriend' Karin, and their friend Juugo. Suigetsu's parents were marine biologists and as such he had an interest in marine animals, especially sharks. Karin's parents were surgeons and Juugo's father owned a sports company.

They were already there when Sasuke walked up. Immediately, Karin's face broke into a gleeful smile and launched herself at him.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Sasuke disentangled himself from Karin's grip and took the beer Suigestu handed him. It was known that Karin only dated Suigetsu to get close to Sasuke. She was the self-appointed president of Sasuke's fanclub, although Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka were its founding members and voted as president and vice-president. They had hung around Sasuke as well when he had gone to Konoha Academy but hadn't seen them after he left.

It wasn't that Sasuke didn't appreciate women. He admits that he would bump into them the majority of the time and that they were essential to the survival of the human race. What he hated was the looks and giggling and their preening. He hated how they threw themselves at him without his permission and incessant giggling in his ear. There was nothing that Sasuke wanted more than for them to leave him alone.

The reason why Sasuke wasn't interest in the female gender was because Sasuke was gay. He knew he was at the age of twelve when he was accidently kissed by a boy. Both had been arguing when another boy bumped into the other and kissed Sasuke. The heat he felt when kissed surprised and confused him. For days Sasuke had thought over the kiss until he was kissed by Sakura Haruno at age thirteen and didn't feel anything like what he did when the boy kissed him.

He had told Karin that he was gay many times, but she seemed to get the idea that she could turn him with her feminine wiles. More than once she tried to seduce him wearing clothes that could cover a coffee table better than it did her, and each time he forced himself to not throw up.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Suigetsu a couple hours, and a couple beers, later.

"Truth or Dare!" said Karin, look slyly at Sasuke.

So, began the game. Sasuke participated because he was bored and always chose truth over dare when Karin called him out because he knew that her dares would only serve to amuse her and humiliate him.

"Okay, Sasuke, who was your first kiss," asked Karin. Sasuke glared at her. She probably only wanted to know to humiliate the person later on.

"Naruto Uzumaki," he said and took a sip of his beer. He smirked when a moment later, Karin spat out hers. Suigetsu burst out laughing and even Juugo managed a smile.

"My idiot cousin?!" she squealed. "When?!"

"We were twelve," said Sasuke. "We were arguing, a boy bumped into him and he kissed me."

"That doesn't count," she said.

"Yes it does," said Suigestu.

"No it doesn't! Naruto...he...he...molested Sasuke with his lips! That's what he did! He kiss-raped Sasuke!"

"Kiss-raped?" said Suigetsu laughing. "That's not even a word."

"Yes it is!"

"It's still a kiss," said Juugo, watching the birds that flew by. Sasuke swears he would become an ornithologist after graduating. The guy really loved birds.

"No it's not! It's rape!" yelled Karin, as if defending Sasuke's honor, but Sasuke didn't have any 'honor' left to defend.

"Can we continue," asked Sasuke before he lost hearing in his ear.

"All right," said Suigetsu and the game continued. After a couple rounds, Suigetsu called Sasuke. "Truth or dare?

"Dare," he said.

"I dare you to go to Tsunade's house and pick a rose from her garden."

Juugo raised an eyebrow curiously as Karin exclaimed and Sasuke look at him in surprise. Tsunade Sannin was an elderly woman who lived in their neighborhood, but always denied her age. She likes to drink sake in place of water and has been known to have a temper when angered. She was also creepy at times and had been dubbed the Witch of the East Side because of her unusual ways. She also kept a garden of flowers and herbs that she grows in her back yard.

"What's so daring about that?" asked Karin.

"Given by how much she guards it, I think a single rose is enough," said Suigetsu.

"Hn, fine," he said. It was a dare. It's not like he could back out.

They drove out of the woods and parked a block away from Tsunade's house. They crept to the house with surprising stealth despite their drinking. They went around to the backyard where the garden was blocked by an eight foot high fence. Sasuke easily climbed it by having Juugo boost him over. Landing on the ground, Sasuke looked around.

Flowers and plants covered just about every space of the yard, half the size of Sasuke's, of course. At the center was a rose bush as vibrant as any found in a photograph. Walking up to it, Sasuke didn't think twice as he plucked one of the fully blossomed flowers. He winced when his finger was pricked and a bead of blood welled from the wound. A drop of blood fell onto the ground.

"Who the fuck is in my garden!" yelled a woman's voice. Sasuke froze for a moment before running toward the fence. On the other side, Suigetsu and the other two had left. Some friends.

Since they had taken Suigetsu's car, Sasuke had no choice but to leg it. Tsunade's home was located at the edge of the suburban area just outside of town, and since they were outside of town, there was a cemetery that had been there since before memory. Sasuke had been there several times for raves and hung out with friends, but this was the first time he had been to the cemetery alone at night.

It was easy to get into the cemetery. There was a tree that had a branch that overhanged past the brick wall. All Sasuke had to do was climb the tree and swing down from the branch. He landed on the floor in a crouch and looked around. There didn't seem to be anyone around. There was a full moon so it was easy to see. He walked among the stones, grumbling about his so-called friends. They bailed on him as soon as it looked like they were going to get caught.

He stopped when he heard a sound, like a sniffle, and turned toward the noise. He didn't see anyone even with the bright moonlight. Walking up a couple of rows, he came upon a boy his age with spikey blonde hair and wore an orange hoodie. He sat in front of two graves; MINATO NAMIKAZE and KUSHINA UZUMAKI. Both had died almost two decades apart with Kushina almost a week ago. He looked back at the young man. The spikey hair was familiar and he could only think of one person who would wear orange.

"Dobe?"

He gasped and turned to Sasuke. It was Naruto Uzumaki. He was a student at Konoha Public School, the Academy's counter part. Despite their similar roots, both schools have a fierce rivalry toward each other. Naruto and Sasuke especially had an intense rivalry as both were captains of the soccer teams.

Even after he graduated, he kept track of Naruto's progress on the field. He became an amazing player and captain. He somehow got the spirits up in his team even after what looks like a staggering defeat and they come back stronger than ever. Last Sasuke heard Naruto had gotten a scholarship to Konoha University. That had been a month ago.

But Sasuke doesn't see that loud mouth spirited young man. Tear tracks stained his cheeks and his nose was red from crying. Sasuke looked at the gravestone again. Kushina. That must have been his mother's name. Sasuke remembered a woman with long red hair who would always watch Naruto play and wish him luck, but she had looked too young to be his mother.

"What are you doing here, teme?" asked Naruto wiping the tears from his eyes.

Instead of answering, Sasuke placed the rose he still had on the gravestone and sat next to Naruto, about a foot away from him. Naruto looked at him in shock as Sasuke put his hands together in prayer.

"Why did you do that?" he asked.

"Because she's your mother," said Sasuke and turned to him with a smirk. "She had to have been stubborn to put up with you."

That made Naruto glare at him.

"Teme!" he half shouted, not wanting the caretaker to catch him. Sasuke chuckled softly. He saw Naruto's gaze lower to his hand and looking down, Sasuke saw the cuts on his hand from the thorns. "You're hurt."

"It's nothing," said Sasuke, fisting his hand and turned away. Another hand took his and he turned to see Naruto wrap a handkerchief around his hand.

"Always a bastard, huh, teme?" said Naruto

Sasuke knew he should be offended. He didn't care about anyone really at school, too focused on graduating early and beating Itachi. He used anyone he could think of to accomplish his goal, uncaring about who got in the way. When he first met Naruto, all he saw was an annoying boy that got in his way. Now, strangely, he wasn't offended. He had been a right bastard.

"Thank you," he said. "How did she die?"

"Cancer," said Naruto. "Doctors said she wouldn't last three months. That was seven months ago."

Sasuke didn't say anything. Really, what could one say in a situation like that. "I'm sorry" was a little pathetic. A person could be sorry all they wanted, but it couldn't bring the dead back to life.

"What are you even doing here, anyway?" asked Naruto. "And with a rose?"

"Would you believe I stole it?" asked Sasuke smugly.

"Actually, I would. I heard you became a bad boy recently. I'm surprised that Sasuke Uchiha decided to go one the wrong side of the law."

"I have been known to dabble," said Sasuke with a smirk.

"Still, I would have thought you would have given it to your girlfriend."

"I don't have a girlfriend." Naruto gave him a surprise look, like the thought of Sasuke not having a girlfriend was unthinkable. "I have many."

Any other person would have thought he was serious, but Naruto saw the smirk and laughed. Sasuke gave him a soft smile before turning to the gravestone.

"I am sorry about your mom," he said.

"Thanks, Sasuke," said Naruto.

Both of them were silent as they kept vigil over the graves.

 **TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

By the time Sasuke returned home, it was close to dawn. The maids had just started doing the morning cleaning before breakfast, so his parents would immediately be notified of when he came back. More than likely his father would burst into room and start demanding where he was and what he had been doing along with how he was tarnishing the family name, but Sasuke stopped caring about that a long time ago.

Walking up the stairs, he started to head toward his room when the door to his father's study opened and he looked upon the face of his father.

Fugaku Uchiha was a very stern man. There wasn't a lot that happened in his or company that he didn't know about. When his son started rebelling, he tried everything to get him back on the right path. Disipline, therapy, even tried to keep him from his so called "friends" but everything he tried backfired. Somehow, Sasuke would escape any confinement Fugaku placed him in and return a week later from wherever he had gone.

"Where the hell have you been?" asked Fugaku as Sasuke continued toward his room.

"Out," said Sasuke not looking back at his father.

"With your so-called, friends? When are you going to learn that those are not people you should be associating with?"

"And whom should I be associate with, Father?" spat Sasuke looking back. "The Hyuugas, who you are trying to get a marriage proposal from, or the Naras with their pharmacutical specialities?"

"They are better than the rejects you run to every day," said Fugaku. "At least we can get good business with them. What can your "friends" bring you?"

"They can piss you off for one," said Sasuke with a smirk before turning to his room again.

"Don't you walk away from me," yelled Fugaku. No doubt if his mother and brother were asleep, they were awake now."I have tried to help you, but you refuse it at every turn. Why can't be be like your brother and do as you're told."

"Because I'm not Itachi!" yelled Sasuke turning back to his father. "I will never be Itachi! I have tried everything to get to please you; honor roll, top marks, valedictorian, science fairs, debate team, chess clubs, everything was so that you could be proud of me, but no matter how many times I've come out on top, you compare me to Itachi. If Itachi was so perfect, why did you have me?"

Fugaku was so angry, his face was turning red in a matter of seconds.

"You have just prove why you don't compare to Itachi. He would never have this embaressing emotional outburst or talk back to me. He would do anything it took to further the gain of the Uchiha name. You, Sasuke, are a disgrace to the Uchiha name!"

Sasuke immediately saw red. How dare Fugaku compare him to Itachi again, and say that to him. Everyone knew that the Uchinas had their secrets, whether in their business or private lives, but only a specific few could find out each secret if they knew where to look.

"You and I have very different ideas of what disgraces the Uchiha name, Father," said Sasuke in a low voice angrily.

Fugaku turned from red to purple and Sasuke didn't see the punch until he flew into the wall and slid down to the floor. He heard his mother scream and suddenly had arms around him.

"I want him out of this house!" yelled Fugaku. "I never want to see his face ever again!"

"Fugaku, don't do this!" yelled Mikoto, pleading with her husband.

"Father, stop," said Itachi as he helped Sasuke up from the floor. Sasuke barely heard any of it over a pounding head and ringing ears from hitting the wall and he felt a sting on his lip and knew it had split.

"No, I will not have a disrespectful son in my household!" he yelled. "I want him gone in an hour. He doesn't take anything with him. He owns nothing."

Uncaring over the distress of his wife and oldest son, he went back into his study and shut the door. Mikoto cried with her hands over her mouth to muffle her sounds as she turned to her sons.

"Sasuke, don't worry," she said kneeling next to him. "I'll talk to him. He'll change his mind."

"Don't bother," said Sasuke wiping the blood from his lip. "We both know that he won't."

Getting up, he stumbles toward his room.

"Sasuke, what are you doing?" asked Itachi.

"We all know that he won't be out of that room until he has to go to work, and then he won't return until late," said Sasuke. "I have time. I'm going to bed."

He didn't wait for his mother or brother's answer before closing the door. He went to his in room bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. As he thought, his lip was split and there was a nice bruise forming on his cheek, a cut from where his father's signet ring connected. There was no doubt that would scar.

Reaching into the cabinet, reached past the towels and took out his first aide kit. Taking out a butterfly bandage, he taped his cut shut and used a towel soaked in cold water for his bruise. After he felt the swelling had sufficently gone down, he threw the towel in a hamper and went to his bedroom, or former bedroom now that his father had kicked him to the curb. Right then, he didn't care. He wanted a few hours of sleep before crashing at Juugo's until he found a place of his own.

He shrugging off his clothes and leaving on only his boxers, he was out before his head hit the pillow.

XXXXXX

He looked around in confusion. He was in some sort of garden, roses covering every inch except for the path he was currently standing on. A mountain was overcasting the garden, but the sun shone brightly with minimal cloud cover. The perfect day.

Why was he in a rose garden?

Up ahead, Sasuke saw a figure bending over the roses, carefully cutting one from a branch and added it to the pile in the basket. The figure was a woman, judging by her long blonde hair split into pigtails and she wore a green sleeveless shirt, khaki colored trousers and sandal high heels.

"Tsunade?" he said in surprise, recognizing the woman.

"I find roses to be the perfect symbol for a person," said Tsunade. "At first glance, you see a beautiful, vibrant flower, but when you try to pluck it, you get pricked by its thorns."

"Where the fuck am I?" asked Sasuke angrily.

Instead of answering, Tsunade set the clippers in the basket and took off her gloves before picking the basket up. She turned to him and walked toward him.

"You're here to be punished, Sasuke Uchiha," she said.

"Punished for what?"

"By your actions, many believe you are unworthy of redemption," said Tsunade standing in front of Sasuke. "They believe that you should be accuratedly punished for each offense."

"They who?" asked Sasuke, annoyed. "What the hell is going on?"

"I am here to give you your punishment," said Tsunade. "For the crimes you have committed against the people around you. Your family, your friends, everyone you have hurt throughout your seventeen years."

"I don't believe this!" Sasuke threw his arms up in exasperation and walked away from the crazy old woman. He was on trial. For what? For being himself? Why should he be on trial for something like that. He turned back to her. "So you're punishing me for being myself?"

"I'm punishing you for being a vain, arrogant, selfish brat," said Tsunade. "I have seen your life, Sasuke, and I do not like what I see. You do everything you can to infuriate your father, your friends with hoodlums you know your father disapproves of, and you throw away the love of your mother and brother."

"They don't love me," said Sasuke. "They never did. I'm the spare, the reject. Someone who will never live up to their expectations."

Tsunade waved a hand and a fountain appeared next to them. She waved her hand again and the water rippled to reveal Mikoto arguing with Fugaku.

"Why must you treat him as insignificant, Fugaku?" asked Mikoto. "All he wants is your approval, but you spend more time with Itachi then you do your youngest son."

"Itachi is heir to the company and this family," said Fugaku crossing his arms and looking out the study floor to ceiling window. "It's natural for me to teach him all I know so he can take over someday. Sasuke knows this, so he shouldn't be acting out the way he does."

"He's a boy trying to gain the attention of his absent father! When was the last time you went to any of his meets or tournaments? Sasuke is as smart, or smarter than Itachi, and you don't want to see it."

"Sasuke will never be as smart as Itachi. His latest outburst is proof of that."

"He's a teenage boy," said Mikoto. Anyone could clearly see the irritation on her face as she looked at her husband's back. How could he be so nonchalant about their son who desperately needed them. "Emotional outbursts are normal for him, or do you not remember what it was like to be a teenager?"

"I do, and I was certainly more mature than that. Sasuke will never have what it takes to be a Uchiha."

"Enough!" yelled Sasuke hitting the water and turning to Tsunade. "I already know how my parents feel toward me. I don't need my mother's pity or my father's approval. I've grown out of those childish desires."

"What about your brother? You still don't know how your actions affect him."

"I don't care."

Tsunade waved her hand and the water ripple again. It showed Itachi standing next to Sasuke's bed as he slept. Sasuke was facing toward Itachi, completely asleep and softly snoring. The covers was kicked almost down to his waist and showed his bare chest and nipple piercings.

"What happened to you, Sasuke," he said softly. "What did Mother and I do to make you hate us so much? All we've ever tried to do was protect you."

Slowly he reached over and gently tucked the covers around Sasuke's shoulders.

"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you."

He walked out and softly closed the door as the water became clear again.

"Protect me?" said Sasuke confused. "Protect me from what?"

"Your father." Sasuke looked at her in shock. "All those fights your parents had late at night weren't just about you. He blamed her for your rebellion and deliquency. Your father's abusive. Not physically, but emotionally, which can be a lot worse than physical. At least those heal over time. Your mother and brother put themselves in the line of fire to protect you from him. They wanted you to grow up as normally as possible, and it worked, until tonight."

"That's impossible. My father is not abusive. There would be signs. I would have seen..."

"Seen what?" asked Tsunade. "Seen how tired your brother was after coming home from working a twelve hours at the office, with more work than anyone else in his department? Seen how depressed your mother is that she's taking anti-suppressants? You never wanted to notice so you never saw. Even when all the evidence is in front of you. You were too busy in your own self-pity that you never noticed."

Sasuke opened his mouth to argue, but he couldn't think of a thing to argue against. It was true that he was so focused on his own anger that he didn't notice how tired his brother looked after coming home from work, sometimes hours after Fugaku who was always home before dinner, or how tired his mother was.

"Fine, so I've been a bad son," he said. "I'll just apologize."

"I'm afraid it's not that easy, Sasuke," said Tsunade. "I told you this was a punishment. There was talk of turning you into a frog. Permanently."

Sasuke looked at her in shock. Turn him into a frog? People did say that Tsunade was a witch, but he thought it was just a rumor.

"What's my punishment?" he asked.

"In light of recent events, we've decided to give you a second chance. If you prove yourself worthy, you'll be able to rejoin your family."

Sasuke looked confused. "What do you mean worthy? What are you going to do to me?"

"A second chance, Sasuke. That's what I'm going to do to you."

"Why?"

The water in the fountain ripple again and Sasuke saw himself setting the rose he stole from Tsunade's garden onto the gravestone of Kushina Uzumaki.

"Why did you give him that rose?" asked Tsunade.

"She was his mom," said Sasuke, stunned and confused. "She didn't have any flowers or any sign of anyone other than him there. It was...sad."

"You still have compassion, let's just hope it's not a one time thing."

"What?!" asked Sasuke, shocked.

"You are being tested, Sasuke Uchiha. You will get a second chance to prove yourself honest, loyal, unselfish and compassionate. Only when you display these qualities will your punishment be lifted. If not, then you will remain this way for the rest of your life."

"Remain what?" asked Sasuke.

Tsunade just smiled.

"Time to wake up now," she said,and shoved him into the fountain.

XXXXXX

Sasuke opened his eyes, wide awake. The dream was still going through his mind even with his sleep ogled brain. Why did she say that he would remain if he didn't pass whatever test they had in mind. Remain what?

He did feel different, but he couldn't quite place it. Like he was forgetting something at the back of his mind and couldn't grasp it. He scoffed. That was stupid. He was Sasuke Uchiha. He didn't forget anything.

A knocking at his door made him jerk in surprise.

"Sasuke, it's after one," said Itachi through the door. "Dad's gone. You can come out now."

Sasuke groaned. He didn't want to deal with his brother right now, not after what he learned. He still couldn't believe it. How can he not notice his brother and mother were being abused? He was supposed to be smart and observant. Why didn't he notice?

Itachi knocked again and Sasuke groaned, only it sounded different to him.

"Sasuke, are you still in there?"

"Yes," said Sasuke, or he tried to say. Instead it came out as a cross between a huff and a bark. He sat up, or tried to. Instead he rolled off the bed and fell with a loud thud. The pounding got harder.

"Sasuke, are you okay?"

Sasuke shook himself and opened his eyes to look at his hand, or what he thought had been his hand. In front of him was a black paw that connected to black furry leg.

 _'What did that fucking witch do?!'_ yelled Sasuke, barking instead of using words. He ran over to his full length mirror and looked at himself.

In the mirror, instead of his human self, he saw a large black dog. A black German Sherpard if he could guess, but completely black. The only human quality he had left was his eyes. Brown but the pupils were still human. He howled in shocked.

 _'What the fuck did she do to me?!'_ he barked.

The door slammed open by Itachi, spooked by the noise on the other side.

"Sasuke?!" he yelled. Instead of finding his little brother, he saw a black dog.

Sasuke turned to his brother, barking.

 _'Itachi, look at what she did to me!'_ he barked.

"Did Sasuke sneak a dog in here?" asked Itachi. "Where is he? Sasuke?"

 _'Itachi, I'm right here,'_ barked Sasuke, trying to get his brother to understand him, but Itachi continued to look around for him.

"Sasuke, this is not funny, come out!" Itachi turned to Sasuke and started waving him off. "Get out of here, mutt. Get!"

 _'Itachi!'_ barked Sasuke as his mother came in. She screamed when she saw the dig.

"What is this dog doing in here?!" she screamed. "Where's my son?!"

 _'Mom,'_ said Sasuke walking up to her, but she backed away.

"Get away, beast! If you hurt my son, I'll shoot you myself."

"Mother, I can't find Sasuke," said Itachi.

Makoto started crying.

"My son," she cried. Itachi went over and hugged her. "My boy!"

Sasuke walked over in an attempt to comfort her, but Itachi shoved him away.

"Go away!" he yelled.

Sasuke whined as he backed up, his ears laying against his head. They didn't know it was him, and they couldn't understand each other.

Hurt, Sasuke did the only thing he could think of. He ran.

 **TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The howl of a dog sounded next to his ear and Sasuke shifted in his sleep. Growling, he turned to the culprit. The mangy mutt was new to the scene, so it didn't know to keep his mouth shut. Too used to freedom, it barked in protest at being caged. Its barking started a chain reaction to the rest of the dogs and all of them started barking, disturbing Sasuke's much needed sleep.

Lifting his head, Sasuke barked once sharply and all the dogs quieted. Snorting, he laid his head back down on his paws. Dogs were pack animals by instinct, and always obeyed the pack alpha. Sometimes, it was good to be on top.

A year ago, Sasuke had freedom. Sure, it sucked scrounging around dumpsters or hunting rabbits in order to survived, but at least he was free. He could roam wherever he had wanted and no one would have stopped him. He had a few close calls with animal control, but he had been able to outsmart them. He thought he would never be caught.

Until a year ago when a group of men cornered him behind his favorite dumpster behind a butcher shop and tranqed him before he realized what had happened. He woke up in a cage and a couple other dogs. Later, they were unloaded into a large abandoned building on the outside of the city with other caged dogs. It didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened. They had just been recruited in the illegal dog fighting ring.

Sasuke had tried to escape plenty of times. He was still working on his next one, but the owner of the ring was a smart s.o.b. He had placed shock collars on all of the dogs so that if any of them got out of hand, they would only be able to go a short distance and the dog would immediately keel over from shock. Also, all of the guards were armed with tranq guns so that if any had escaped, they would be shot down and taken back to its cage.

What the owner didn't know was that Sasuke was smarter. Despite his canine appearance, he still had the brain of a human, and the adaptation of one as well. In the ten years since his transformation, he taught himself how to survive and adapted to every situation.

Sighing, Sasuke thought about the first few weeks after his transformation. Mikoto and Itachi had called the police and a two month manhunt had been underway to find him. Eventually, the police had given up and his mother and brother called in teams of private investigators and even posted rewards to anyone with any information about him.

Fugaku never once questioned Sasuke's disappearance. He was interviewed by several reporters and police officers, and each time he stated that Sasuke had been known to run off for days at a time and returned as if normal. After a year he barely acknowledged that he had a son named Sasuke. He ran his company with an iron fist and taught Itachi how to run the company. A month before his capture, Sasuke read of his father's death in the newspaper. According to reports, he worked himself to death, something Sasuke would have no trouble in believing.

Sasuke had hoped to return home then. He had hope to reconcile with his mother and brother, even if he remained in his canine form. A hope that had broken when he got captured and forced into the ring.

Sasuke tapped his tail on the cage floor in thought. He had to find a way to get out. Humans and guns he could outrun, but the damn shock collar was another thing. Over time the other dogs had figured out that they wouldn't get shocked if they stay within a certain range to avoid being shocked, but since Sasuke was smarter than the average canine, they kept the collar on him and caged to keep him from running off.

The owner of the fighting ring wasn't very smart, but he was smart enough to know that Sasuke was his meal ticket.

"All right, everyone, let's get ready," yelled the ringleader, a heavy set man wearing a three pieces expensive suit and a cigar nearly permenantly attatched to his mouth. He leaned down and blow a smoke ring into Sasuke face. "You're going to make me a lot of money tonight, aren't you, boy?"

Sasuke got up, turned around in his cage and presented his rear end to him before flopping back down on the floor. Gato laughed.

"You're a real stubborn one, aren't you?' he said. "Why you haven't broke yet is beyond me. Mizuki, why do you think that is?"

"Some dogs are like that," said Mizuki, the dogs caretaker. "Got a mean streak a mile long. Safer for everyone that he's in the cage instead of loose where he could possibly tear a person's arm off."

Gato laughed loudly.

"If he does, then we better have ringside seats," he said. "Get him ready for the ring. He's our champ, you know."

"Yes, sir," said Mizuki. Gato left and Mizuki smiled sinisterly at Sasuke. "Come on, boy. Boss man wants you amped up for the show."

Sasuke snarled as the human reached onto a table and picked up a needle syringe and a clear bottle. He didn't have to read the label to know what was in it. Another helper had a catchpole ready as another opened the cage. Sasuke didn't given them time for either. As soon as the door open, he was out like a shot. He ran around the table and cages, confusing the handlers until he ran toward the open door.

He was a foot away when a jolt of electricity shot through him. He yelped and snarled, shaking his head to get rid of the feeling. Not one of his brighter moments, but he wasn't about to let Mizuki stick the needle in him. One of the handlers got close and Sasuke used the only weapon he had. His teeth. He wrapped his jaw around the man's arm and bit down. The man screamed and fell to the floor with Sasuke on top. Sasuke felt several pricks to his rear but that didn't lessen his hold on the man's arm.

Sasuke may be a dog now with limited resources, but that didn't mean he would go down fighting. He'd find a way out of this hell hole and get back home. That was his last thought before he blacked out.

When he woke up again, he felt more alert than before. He growled. The bastard injected him. Another reason to tear his throat out. Looking around, he saw that he was in the starting gate. They were bringing him in first. It must be punishment for trying to escape. He also noticed that his collar was off. They always took it off for the fights, but they kept the tranqs on hand.

 _'So that's how they want to play it,'_ thought Sasuke as he shook off the last of the ketamine that had been pumped into his system along with whatever drugs they had given him. He heard Gato over the microphone as a handler stood by the cage, ready to open it and let Sasuke out after the introduction.

"And now, the moment you've all been waiting for, the terror of the alley dogs, the devil dog himself, Akuma!" yelled Gato and the doors opened. Sasuke sauntered out and growled at the surrounding audience.

 _'At least he gave me a decent name,'_ thought Sasuke as he turned to his opponent. A sniff brought a snarl to his lips. His opponent wasn't just a dog, but a wild dog. He had to watch himself. Wild dogs weren't really fighters in the wild, but when cornered, they had jaws that could break bone. They were also hard to domesticate unless from birth, which meant the trainer had this guy that long.

As the only intelligent canine in the ring, he felt he should warn the dog off, so Sasuke gave a "Back off or get hurt" growl, which the wild dog ignored. It snarled back at him, straining its muscles to get to Sasuke but waited until the signal like it was trained. Sasuke could see a lot of pain and anger behind it's dark eyes. Sasuke was surprised it didn't back off. Usually dogs were quite smart and could sense when their opponent was smarter or stronger than them and back away, but this one had a bone to pick and was going to use Sasuke to do it.

Sasuke sighed sadly.

 _'Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you.'_

A bell rang and the dog leaped toward Sasuke. Sasuke jumped to the side and shoved the dog, trying to assert control over him. Sasuke had found that the easiest way to end a fight with the least injuries, or casualties, was to show the dog who was boss, but this dog didn't seem to take the hint.

Instead of backing down, the dog twisted and clamped its jaws on Sasuke rump. Sasuke yelped and kicked the dog in the jaw to dislodge it and aimed his teeth at its neck. More forceful control had to be shown. The dog again twisted before Sasuke could do more than scrap his front teeth on the skin before it locked its jaws around Sasuke's neck.

Sasuke snarled in annoyance and did a very human move. He dropped to his back and kicked the dog off. It flew over Sasuke and landed against the fence surrounding the ring, falling on its side. Sasuke rolled back onto his back and faced his opponent, waiting for it to regain its senses and attack Sasuke again.

The dog struggled to get up and face Sasuke. Sasuke knew it was going to charge again and prepared for it. He needed to end the fight quickly before the dog's heart burst from whatever drugs that were injected in the dog's system. By the way the dog was panting and the way it shook, Sasuke could tell that whoever owned the dog gave it an overdose and the dog was almost on its last legs. Sasuke would be doing it a favor by taking it down.

Like Sasuke had predicted, the dog launched at him and Sasuke did the same. Unlike the dog who had been going for Sasuke's throat, Sasuke shoved the dog mid-leap and both landed on the ground, the dog on its side and Sasuke on his feet. Sasuke opened his mouth for the first time since the fight started and clamped his teeth around the dog's neck. The dog struggled and twisted to get Sasuke off it, but Sasuke kept the dog down and snarled. Eventually, the dog's struggles died down and it lay on the ground, panting. When it did, Sasuke let go and the dog laid on its stomach submissively and Sasuke sat down on his hunches.

"What the hell are you doing?!" yelled Gato. "Finish it!"

Sasuke scoffed and turned away. He had thought about killing the dog, but he rejected the idea like he did every week when he was forced to fight. He didn't want to kill an animal just because it was forced into a situation that it didn't want.

Gato snarled infuriated at Sasuke before turning to his men.

"Shoot them both!" he yelled.

This time, the handlers held up actual guns, not the tranqs, and aimed them at Sasuke and the wild dog. Sasuke snarled and turned to Gato, getting ready to jump. If he was going down, he'd take the oversized toad with him.

Next thing he knew, the doors to the warehouse were thrown open and a voice over a megaphone yelled, "This is the police! Nobody move!"

Which was, of course, the worse advice anyone would give a group of criminals. Leaving the two dogs in the ring, the spectators scattered and Sasuke heard footsteps running after them. Turning around in the cage, Sasuke noted the only way out was by jumping the fence. Luckily, he had enough for a running start.

Stepping back until his rump hit the other end of the fence, he gave a running start and jumped the fence. He nearly cleared it but his back knees hit the top of the fence and he tumbled to the ground. He landed on his side, hitting his head on the ground first before the rest of his body followed.

Pain hit him, but only slight. Luckily for him, dogs had thick skulls. It would take a car crash for them to be knocked out. Scrambling to his feet, he ran toward the door. Now that his collar was off, it was the perfect chance for him to escape. Immediately, yells echoed around the warehouse as Sasuke dodged one officer or dog handler after another.

"A dog's loose!"

"Catch it!"

"Hurry before it escapes!"

Sasuke dodged around legs and catchpoles. Once, a catchpole looped around his neck, but he twisted and grabbed the pole before the lasso could tighten around his neck and yanked it from the handler's grasp. He shook the lasso off and ran back toward the door. An officer spread his legs and attempted to grab Sasuke, but Sasuke easily slipped under him and ran out between his legs. Really, did they think that because they looked intimidating would make him scared? It might have worked with a normal dog, but not with Sasuke.

With a doggy smirk, he ran out of the warehouse and ran down the street.

XXXXXX

"Well, Kyuubi, are you excited?" There was a bark from the back seat and Naruto laughed at his partner. "I can tell you're psyced. I am too. I love our job."

Naruto sighed sadly as he drove down the road.

"This might be our last job together, old man. The captain said you're getting too old, no matter how good you are. They're giving me a new partner and I'll have to retire you."

A wet nose nudged his cheek and Naruto laughed as he reached behind him and petted his furry partner. Today would be their last crime scene together. The K-9 departement had decreed Kyuubi was too old to be a police dog and wanted to retire him to breed more police dogs. Naruto was against it, of course. Kyuubi was only six years old. He still had a couple years left on the force, but Kakashi said that it wasn't their choice and this would be their last run before he gets a new partner.

Naruto didn't like the idea of a new partner. He had Kyuubi since he had joined the K-9 unit and he was descended from his mom's first dog Kitsune. Kushina had been in the K-9 unit after Naruto's father died because she couldn't stand the thought of working with another human partner so she took the family dog and started training her. Since then, Kushina and Kitsune had became an infamous pair in the police and crime world, putting a lot of criminals away and took down a lot of drug rings.

By the time Kushina had gotten sick, Kitsune was already nearing retirement so they allowed her to stay with Naruto and his mother in the final months. She had already had several puppies by then and were going to be trained as either police or service dogs by the Inuzukas. A week after Kushina died, Kitsune had left and was found the next morning by the cemetery grounds keeper. She died curled up on Kushina's grave. She was buried in a pet cemetery specialized for police dogs.

Kyuubi looked exactly like his grandmother, right down to the red fur and the black tipped tail. When he had been born, Tsume Inuzuka doubted he would live because he had been so small and malnourished, but Naruto didn't care. He took Kyuubi home, raised him and trained him to became one of the best police dogs on the force.

Now, Kyuubi would have to retire. How was he going to say goodbye to his best friend? How was he supposed to do that?

Out the windshield, Naruto could see the lights of the police cruisers surrounding the warehouse that was their destination when he felt a tug on his head and he reached behind to swat Kyuubi in the nose.

"Kyuubi, what have I told you about tugging my hair?"

Kyuubi growled in disagreement and grabbed a tuff of Naruto's hair and tugged. Laughing, Naruto reached around and shoved him away.

"Get off, you big galoot," he said

He turned back around just when a black shaped jumped out in front of him. He slammed both feet on the brakes but it was too late. His cruiser hit the animal before either had time to stop. The dog, for that was Naruto found out that it was, flew ten feet down the street and rolled two more. Putting the car in park, he threw the door open and ran out.

"Shit!" he cursed loudly. "Shit, shit, shit!"

A summer at the Inuzukas gave him basic canine biology. He immediately knew that it wasn't one of the K-9 dogs because it was only him and Hana there to check for drugs and Haimaru wasn't all black. That meant he, for Naruto had checked for gender and saw that it was male, was either a stray or a fight dog. Naruto hoped it wasn't the latter. He was unconcious at the moment, and by the multiple cuts and scrapes, Naruto hoped he didn't have internal bleeding.

"Hana!" he yelled, calling for the other police dog handler. "Hana, I need some help!"

Hana ran over and looked the dog over. Haimaru went over to Naruto's cruiser to greet Kyuubi.

"Broken front leg," she said. "Two broken ribs, possible a fractured third, and I don't even want to know about its insides."

"Can you save him?" asked Naruto almost in tears. The thought that he could possibly have killed a creature was tearing him up.

"If we get him to the clinic," said Hana, "but the unit..."

"Yeah," said Naruto sadly. He wanted to save the dog, but he had a job to do.

"Go on, Naruto."

Naruto looked up to see his department captain, Kakashi Hakate, standing next to him. His English bulldog Pakun, more mascot than police dog, stood next to him.

"Kakashi-sensei?" said Naruto confused.

"We only need one dog," said Kakashi. "Get that one to the clinic and let Kiba take a look at him. Maybe we can save it."

"Yeah," said Naruto with a grateful nod. A lot of police dog handlers don't believe that dogs in fight rings were worth saving, but it was regulation to give each dog a chance. He turned to Hana. "Hana?"

"Tell my brother not to make a mess of this one," she said with a smile. "I think it's okay to move him, but gently. We don't know if his neck is broken or not."

Naruto nodded. Gently, both dog handlers lifted the massive dog from the ground toward Naruto's cruiser. Kakashi got Kyuubi out of the back seat and into the passenger side so that Hana could set the dog onto the back seat. They secured the dog with a seatbelt and Hana even wrapped a blanket around it's body to keep it from shock.

"You sure it's okay?" asked Naruto before getting back into his cruiser.

"Go on, Uzumaki," said Kakashi. "We'll be all right here."

"Just let me know what happened," said Naruto as he got into his cruiser and took off toward the city.

 **TBC**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

When Sasuke woke, his entire body felt heavy and he ached everywhere. It was a dull ache, like it was either old or someone gave him painkillers. Even breathing hurt. He attempted to test his paws on if they were broken and softly grunted when his back right leg flared. It was broken. He had enough broken bones in the past to know what one felt like. He also suspected a concussion based on the throbbing of his head.

The last thing he remembered after escaping the warehouse was running across the street and then intense pain. He hadn't been shot since he hurt in more than one places, so possibly a car hit him. Just what he needed. He escaped the hellhole just to be hit by a car. Fate clearly loved him.

He heard the sounds of other animals around him, so it was probable that he was in a veterinary clinic. It took a while to even open his eyes. When he did, the first thing he saw was the bars of a dog cage. He was definitely in someone's dog house. Taking a deep breathe, he smelled aniseptic, other animals and citrus. The last was an odd smell for a veterinary clinic. An air freshener maybe?

At least it was better than the fight ring. He could tell that it was no hole-in-the-wall, low budget clinic. The walls were a pristine white and the cage he was in was clean. The food in the dish left in the cage didn't have mold or smell funny and the water was clean. All he needed to do now was wait until he was healed and escape of here.

He heard the door open and the citrus smell increased.

"Oh, you're awake!"

Sasuke turned and huffed in surprise. Standing infront of him in a horrid orange muscle shirt wearing the biggest smile Sasuke had ever seen was Naruto Uzumaki. He was holding a brown paper bag in one hand. He was also the source of the citrus smell.

Naruto had changed some since Sasuke had last saw him ten years ago. He filled out from the skinny gangly dork to muscles nearly ripping out of his shirt. Sasuke didn't know what sport he was playing to get that much muscle, but it wasn't soccer. The wide stupid grin was still the same and he still had the same six whisker like scars on either side of his face. Sasuke never learned how he got those. The jeans he wore did not hide his well shaped thighs as he bent down infront of Sasuke's cage. Sasuke didn't think his mind could take how the blonde's rear looked.

A secondary scent was coming off him under the citrus and Sasuke wrinkled his nose. He didn't know Naruto was a dog person.

"Sorry about last night," said Naruto sitting crosslegged on the floor outside of the cage. "I'm the one who hit you with me car."

 _'Who the hell taught you how to drive? The devil,'_ thought Sasuke, since he couldn't speak out loud.

"My dog was kind of distracting me, so I didn't see you," continued Naruto, obviously not hearing Sasuke sarcasm. "But I've brought you some goodies as an apology. I made them myself."

 _'So, they're poison?'_

Naruto grinned as he reached into the bag and pulled out what looked to be a cookie. He carefully reached toward the cage to give it to Sasuke.

"Naruto!" Naruto jumped, dropping the cookie in the cage accidently, and spilling half the bag on the floor. Both human and canine looked up to see a man with brown hair, brown eyes and two fang like tattooes on both his cheeks glaring at Naruto. He was wearing a white lab coat over a blue shirt and blue jeans.

"What have I told you about sticking your hands in cages?!" he said.

"He's not going to bite me, Kiba," said Naruto.

The name instantly registered to Sasuke. Kiba Inuzuka, he was the youngest son of the Inuzuka family famous for breeding and training police and military dogs. With the money they made, he could have gone to Konoha Academy with Sasuke, but instead he went to school with Naruto and both were best friends.

"He's a fight dog," said Kiba. "The only thing he knows how to do is tear a creature's throat out. I don't want you added to the list."

Sasuke snorted.

 _'It's not like I volunteered.'_

"Stop it, Kiba, he can hear you," said Naruto. "Besides, it's not like he volunteered. He might be nice."

Sasuke looked at Naruto in surprise. Did he actually just say that? Sasuke nice? Like that would ever happen.

"I'm gonna adopt him!"

Sasuke yelped in surprise as Kiba's mouth dropped open.

"Are...are you crazy?!"

Sasuke would have to agree with the dog-lover. Why would anyone want to adopt a former pit dog? Not that Sasuke would, but he had seen what a fight dog could do to the human body. Gato had a Rottwieler that he kept close to starving to terrify his dealers, or tear apart opposition or people he believed betrayed him.

He did try to use Sasuke, but no matter how much Gato starved him, Sasuke never attacked any human being. He may have been starving close to death, but he never harmed anybody. If Naruto had made that declaration about any dog other than Sasuke, the blonde would possibly become seriously injured or dead trying to domesticate any fight dog.

"Naruto, you can't domesticate fight dogs," said Kiba. "At least not ones that have been fighting as long as he has. Look at his scars."

Sasuke didn't deny that he had a lot of scars. It was impossible to be in any physical confrontation and not get out unscathed.

"But look at him, Kiba," said Naruto. "Is he acting like any dog that just got out of the pit? He's not growling or snapping at the bars. He's just watching us."

"That's because he's heavily sedated."

Sasuke had to disagree. The sedatives were wearing off and the pain in his ribs and legs were increasing. He didn't make a sound though. One thing his father taught him that stuck was to not show anyone how in pain he was. Inside, he boxed the pain away in the corner of his mind. Putting it off until he could get an extra dose of sedatives.

"There's something about him, though," said Naruto turning back to Sasuke and looking at him. "I can't put my finger on it. It's almost like he's watching me. Waiting for me to make a move."

 _'Put one in the idea jar. The idiot actually thought of something,'_ thought Sasuke.

"Naruto, I know you're upset about Kyuubi, but you can't replace him with the first dog you see," said Kiba.

Sasuke had a momentary curious thought on who Kyuubi was but shook it off. It made no difference to him who Naruto hung out with.

"I'm not replacing him," said Naruto. "But I hate to just kill an animal off without giving him a chance. I know what that's like."

Naruto said the last part softly, and Sasuke didn't miss the sadness in the tone. Why would Naruto feel sad about being alone? At the school games, he was always so loud and boisterous, getting the attention of everyone around him. It only made sense that he had a lot of friends, but why would Sasuke be getting an air of loneliness from him.

"Naruto, you know I'm more than willing to give a dog a second chance," said Kiba, "but this one, there's something off about him. I don't trust him."

 _'Point to the mutt."_

"Than trust me," said Naruto pleading.

Kiba looked at his friend and groaned. He never could win argument when Naruto pulled out the puppy-dog look. Not many people could.

"Fine, but he's your responsibility," said Kiba. "I don't want you to blame me if he bites your hand off."

"He won't," said Naruto happily. "Thanks, Kiba!"

"Yeah, yeah," said Kiba walking back out. "I'm fucking going soft."

Naruto smiled and turned to the dog.

"Here that, boy! We're together now."

 _'Great, just what I needed. An idiot for an owner.'_

"Now I just need to name you," said Naruto and paused in thought. Sasuke prayed it wasn't some stupid oximoronic, cliché dog name like Spike or Fido. That was the last thing he needed.

"You know, you kind of remind me of a guy I know. He was the most arrogant annoying prick I ever meet, but he was also the most honest guy I had ever meet."

Sasuke looked up, curious. Was the idiot talking about him?

"According to the papers, he just disappeared one day," said Naruto. "I mean, I know the guy was a dick, but even he's not that heartless. He would have called his family or something. He's not dead, I know it."

Sasuke looked at him in surprise. Naruto was talking about him. He never though that anyone would believe in him after all this time. He thought even his family had given up on him. There was hardly anything about him in the newspaper anymore. He had heard that Itachi had kept a hotline open in case there was any information on him. There was even a reward. Sasuke didn't want to know how many times a day the phone rang.

"I'm helping them find him." Sasuke looked at the blonde in shock. "I know it's impossible. The guy was a genius so he could easily become a ghost if he wanted to, but he was my first friend. When everyone else ignored me or hurt me, he was the only one who treated me as a person. Sure, he degrated my intelligience and everything, but he didn't make me feel bad about myself. He pushed me to be better. It's because of him I'm here today."

Sasuke put his head back on his paws. He never considered the blonde as friend. An annoyance, yes, but never a friend. He didn't like how easily Naruto trusted people or how easily he could make friends. Like Sasuke, he had been captain of his soccer team, and everyone in the city knew about the rivalry between the two schools, and especially of the two captains. Sasuke wanted more than anything to beat the blonde knucklehead and he had a few times, but then Naruto had beaten him more times than that.

"Can't call you Sasuke. That's too weird."

'Why not? It's my name, idiot,' thought Sasuke.

"How about..." Naruto thought for a moment. He wasn't very original when it came to naming pets, which was why he named Kyuubi after the legendary fox from his favorite story. Looking at the dog, he saw his completely black coat. Not one speck of white in his fur. It reminded him of Sasuke's hair. Black as night.

"Kurogane."

Sasuke looked up at the man and mentally shrugged. It was better than Butch that was for sure. Gato wasn't bad at the naming department, but names like "Akuma", "Yoru", and "Shinigami" were not really original for fighting dogs.

"Well, you're not growling, so I guess you like the name," said Naruto with a grin. He then looked at the feeding tray thoughtfully. "What's wrong? Aren't you hungry?"

Sasuke was actually starving, but he wasn't going to eat Kibbles&Bits. He maybe a dog, but he would never eat like one. Plus he wasn't really interested in eating anything the blonde prepared.

"Hold on. I'll be right back."

Naruto got up off the floor and ran out of the door. Sasuke watched him leave before snorting. That idiot can't stay still for two seconds. He hoped whatever job he got was enough to tire him out at the end of the day. Even as a teenager, the man was a bundle of energy that never seemed to run out.

Naruto returned a minute later unwrapping a sandwich. Taking the complete sandwich, he reached through the bars and set the meal on the cage bottom. Sasuke looked at the idiot. Kiba was right. This guy had no common sense at all. Only someone either completely trusting or suicidal would put their hand in a cage holding a wild dog.

But Sasuke was hungry, and the sandwich looked good. He took a small bite of the bread and chewed.

He paused in surprise. The sandwich was actually good. The meat tasted hand carved and there was some sort of dressing. He was surprised because all throughout the games, Naruto always talked about his love for ramen, instant or freshly made. For him to eat anything other than that was surprising.

Naruto grinned like an idiot.

"Good, huh?" he said. "One of my exes was a chef. He got tired of me eating instant meals all the time and taught me a couple recipes. Strangely enough, I actually got into and became a better chef than him."

Sasuke was surprised anybody would date this oaf, let alone a guy. He was a little surprised Naruto dated a guy. He always bragged about wanting to marry Sakura Haruno, the prettiest and smartest girl in the Konoha District. Sasuke guessed he finally grew out of the childish fantasy and started dating in the real world.

Absently, Sasuke wondered if he was dating anyone now. Probably that Kyuubi guy they were talking about earlier. Weird name for a guy, but then so was Naruto.

"Then he left me for his culinary instructor. Love sucks."

So single. Sasuke doubted that he would jump into a relationship after that.

"That's why I love dogs so much. They're uncomplicated. Just give them so food and loving, and they're loyal for the rest of their lives."

Sasuke scoffed. Not this dog. He was perfectly happy with his freedom. As soon as he was healed, he'd escape the first opportunity he got.

"Now that Kyuubi's retired, I don't know what I'm going to do," continued Naruto. "He's been my partner for ten years, before I joined the academy and the K-9 unit. We trained together, made the perfect team. Not the stupid captain says he has to retire because of his age. Doesn't matter that he's the best damn drug-sniffing dog on the force. Better than even Kin Tsuchi and her dog Senbon. Girl brags about her dog like no tomorrow, but they hardly bring anything in."

The conversation had just gotten interesting. Kyuubi was his dog. He had never seen Naruto as a dog person.

"I was going to show in in this years K-9 Dog Show, but with a new partner, I need to train with it before I can place it in the show, and that'll take at least a year."

Sasuke had finished the sandwich and looked up at Naruto, and was surprised to find Naruto looking at him.

"I know you won't be a K-9 dog," said Naruto almost sadly. "I can see that you have too much pride to be owned by anyone. Probably escape as soon as you're healed."

Sasuke was surprised at the statements Naruto was giving. It was like he could read Sasuke's mind, or maybe he was that in tuned with a dog's mind. Either way, it still didn't change Sasuke's mind on leaving.

"Still, nothing's impossible, right?" said Naruto smiling at him. "Everyone deserves a second chance."

Sasuke had a sudden feeling of deja-vu ten years ago and his body shivered.

 **TBC**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Sasuke stretched his leg and stiffened when he felt the pain shoot from his body. It wasn't the first time he had gotten seriously injured in the ten years he had became a dog, and it wasn't the first time he had gotten hit by a car. The first time it had happened, he was sure he was dying. It hurt to breathe and a bone had been sticking out of his leg. The driver had left him for dead in the ditch he had landed in and drove off. Sasuke had lain there for hours, waiting to die, but miraculously, he healed and woke up a few days later as good as new.

Sasuke never went out of his way to experiment his new healing powers, but it did seem that the worst the injury, the faster he healed. After a week, the bruises were already gone and his ribs mostly healed. He guessed another week until he was able to breath without stabbing pain. His leg was a different story. He overheard Kiba and his wife, Hinata, that it all of the bones had shattered, so it would be a while until he healed, even with his freakishly fast healing.

He looked around the kennel he was staying in. It was comfortable since Naruto "adopted" him. He placed a blanket on the flooring and gave him a sort of meatloaf whenever he visited, which was daily. Sasuke didn't mind the attention, but held do without the goofy attitude that his new "owner" had.

Sasuke didn't stay all day in the kennel of course. Sometimes, they would put some sort of wheel device on him and take him out for a walk with the other dogs that were recovering. The other dogs ignored them as they played and rumped in the dirt. Sasuke ignored them as well as he exercised his front legs and looked for a way to escape once his leg healed.

The worst part about being in this infernal places was the boredom. On the streets there was always something interesting going on, so he was always entertained, and he would scrounge the garbage for a newspaper to keep up with the news.

Here, aside from outside, he wasn't allowed past the kennel room unless they were giving him X-rays and checkups. Kiba, his so-called doctor, acted more dog than human and would be lucky to hold a conversation with his wife, but his blundering was entertaining to a idiotic degree.

Sasuke laid on his head on his paws as he looked around the veternary kennel. Even in the dog fights he was never this bored. He would ask for a book, but he didn't want anyone to start calling him Einstein or something equally as stupid. He'd never be able to live that one down.

"Hey, boy." Sasuke looked up to see Naruto walking into the kennel. The idiot still visited him, as if it was required since he "saved" Sasuke and all. "I thought you might be bored so I brought you something. I think you'll like this one."

He held up a book and Sasuke groaned at the title. _The Watchers_ by Dean Koontz. Somebody hated him.

XXXXXX

"I don't see what the problem is."

"The problem is, Naruto, that you adopted the demon dog of the fighting ring," said Ino.

"Stop calling him 'the demon dog'. He has a name."

"Kurogane." Ino scoffed. "Not very original."

"It suits him."

He looked around the table to the rest of his friends in hopes of someone helping him, but they were all silent. Sakura Haruno, their medical examiner, looked down at her salad while her husband Rock Lee slurped some sort of green concoction. Shikamaru Nara looked away from the computer he was typing on and his wife, Temari, just looked at him. It was only half of his friends. The rest were in different departments but they got together once a week for games or to just hang out. Sometimes, they would bring their kids for a playdate and Naruto would bring Kyuubi. They would have a lot of fun and Naruto would get to keep childhood friends.

"What's so demonic about him?" asked Naruto after a minute of silence.

"One of the handlers that had been arrested said the dog nearly took his arm off when he was trying to get the dog into its cage," said Temari.

"Of course he did," said Naruto. "They were abusing him."

"Naruto, we just want you to know what you're doing," said Sakura. "Impulsively adopting this dog might be the worst decision you've ever made."

"Or the best," said Naruto. "Everyone deserves a second chance."

"Well, I agree with Naruto-kun," said Rock Lee. "Everyone does deserve a second chance, Sakura-chan, or else you wouldn't have married me."

Sakura sighed. That had been true. Everyone knew that Rock Lee had a huge crush on Sakura ever since middle school, but the strawberry blonde didn't give the boy the time of day. It had been only seven years ago that Sakura decided to try and date Rock Lee. Rock Lee had tried to get over his crush on Sakura and date other girls, but none seemed to get his eccentricities. No one knew how Sakura does, but the woman doesn't seemed too bothered by her husband's random acts of strangeness.

"Thank you, Lee," said Naruto.

"We just want to make sure you're thinking this through," said Temari. "Right, Shikamaru?"

"If you ask me, arguing about it is too troublesome," said Shikamaru. "You all know that once Naruto makes a decision about something, you can't change his mind. He learns from his mistakes, so we just have to watch and wait."

"Thanks, Shikamaru," said Naruto. "I guess." He turned to his friends. "Look, I know you're worried, but I have a feeling about this dog. He almost seems intelligent. I don't want to throw something like that away. I can't let them kill him. I just can't."

"What if it attacks you," asked Ino. "It is an attack dog."

"Maybe, but he hasn't attacked me. I've handled him a couple of times. He never hurt me. Looked more annoyed than anything though."

"Are you crazy, Naruto?!" said Sakura in shock. "That thing can hurt you!"

"He never even tried to hurt me, Sakura-chan, and stop calling him a thing. He has a name."

"It doesn't matter," said Ino. "What does matter is that you're trying to kill yourself."

Naruto set his fork down and stood as he packed up his lunch.

"You know, I thought that as my friends you would understand, but I guess I was wrong."

"Naruto..." started Sakura as Naruto left.

Naruto walked out of the cafeteria and back to the K-9 grounds. Kakashi was going to introduce him to his new canine partner and he wanted to get it over with.

Most people didn't know the connection between human and canine. It was similar to partnering with another human, but deeper. Dogs will stay loyal to its trainer, not because they were trained to, but because of mutual respect. You take care of them and they took care of you.

They reasons why Naruto wanted to adopt Kurogane were his own, and his friends couldn't see that. They didn't want to see the caring dog behind the scars and the mean gleam in his eye. The one time he asked his friends to visit Kurogane with him, they vehemently refused. So far, Kiba and Hinata were the only ones that near the dog without being forced.

Naruto actually came to like Kurogane. There was something about him that was familiar. He just couldn't place it.

Naruto walks into the K-9 department and immediately was greeted by the barking of dogs. Each one in a cage was either a trainee or a dog without a partner. Each of different breeds and had different methods of training. Usually, dogs stayed with their human partners but there have been cases where a dog would stay in the kennel, either because a spouse or child was allergic or because their apartment didn't allow dogs.

Luckily, for Naruto, that had never been a problem. He lived in the house his parents had bought and were going to move into when they married. Apparently, his parents were thinking big picture because it had three bedrooms. When Naruto was born, one became his room while the other became Kitsune's then Kyuubi's room. Even after the death of his mother, Naruto loathed changing his mother's room, but he finally moved everything out after two years and made his old bedroom a guest room.

Naruto wondered what had been up with Kakashi. He had been anxious lately, and only someone who really knew Kakashi would be able to see it, and since Kakashi mentored Naruto during the academy and training Kyuubi, Naruto knew Kakashi pretty well.

Naruto walked up to Kakashi standing next to a cage. The dog in the cage was a Malinois and was tail-wagging on the other side of the cage.

"Naruto, meet Hachiko," said Kakashi.

Naruto knelt down in front of the cage and held his hand out for the dog to sniff. Hachiko did and started licking Naruto's hand through the bars.

"What did you want to see me about?" asked Naruto. "I know it's not about a new dog, or else you wouldn't have wanted to be here."

Kakashi laughed softly, adjusting the eyepatch over his eye. He never talked about how he lost it, sore subject, Naruto guessed, but Naruto knew that it was personal.

"That ring we busted a couple weeks ago was only a small fry," said Kakashi. "The bigger ring is still going. Their main focus is of course, narcotics and dog fights. We need someone inside to get the big fish."

Naruto looked at him in shock.

"You want me to go undercover?" he asked.

"Yes." Kakashi sighed. "Naruto, I know I shouldn't be asking you this, but I don't know who else to trust. These people are always a step ahead of us. That last bust was either lucky or..."

"Or someone taking out the small fry," said Naruto.

Kakashi nods.

"The leader is a fan of fight rings, human and canine, mostly human. We managed to get some info on Gato on how they contact their spectators for each fight. We're hoping to put an opperative in the fights and get closer to the boss."

Naruto looks at the dog in the cage.

"With him?" he asked. "You want him to fight in the pit?"

"What's wrong with him?" asked Kakashi.

Naruto straightens and looks over at Kakashi seriously.

"Well, he looks like a puppy," said Naruto. "I'm sure he's been specially trained for this or something, but no one in those rings are going to take me seriously if I walk in with a pup fresh off its dam's teat. I need a dog that not only can pass for a fight dog, but also one I can trust."

"Kyuubi's retired, Naruto," said Kakashi. "According to regulations, he can't go back into the field. You need a new dog or transfer to another department."

Naruto sighed and thought for a moment. He didn't want to switch departments. The K-9 unit was his life. It had been ever since he could remember. He mother taught him everything he needed to know about taking care of dogs, training them, and spotting a fight dog from across the street, and there was nothing more that he would rather do than work with a dog and take out bad guys.

But he couldn't do it with that dog. He was sure it had been very well trained for this operation, but he couldn't take Hachiko into the fight pit. Fighting dogs were more than just trained as attack dogs. They had a look in their eyes that told people what they were. Hachiko looked too innocent to be taken seriously, and an expert trainer would spot that in a second.

Kakashi watched as Naruto thought. The boy had the blood and training of two of the best detectives in the city. Kushina taught him everthing he needed to know about fighting crime since he was in the cradle and friends from both parents taught him how to fight and shoot. He had the look and recklessness of his father but his mother's intelligence. Naruto took track to keep in shape and karate in self-defense. Since infancy, the only goal the boy had was to be a great police officer like his parents, and he was slowly achieving it.

Now he was watching Naruto achieve his goal. Kakashi couldn't be prouder of the young man.

"What about Kurogane?"

Kakashi looked at Naruto in surprise.

"Your new dog?" he asked.

"Yeah. He's already trained as a fighter dog, and he'll pass any trainer's inspections. He has experience. More than six month old Hachiko."

"Naruto, the point of rehabilitation is that the victim does not go into the same situation. Taking back to the fighting ring is the opposite of that."

"I can train him," said Naruto. "I can train him to not be a fight dog and be a police dog. I know I can do it."

"Naruto, we can't just take a dog from a known fight pit and make him a police dog."

"But he'd be perfect. I'm tell you, Kakashi, he's smart. I walk him around with the other dogs, and he doesn't fight them, even when they are fighting each other. He can do it. I know he can."

Kakashi sighed heavily and thought. It was against regulations to use dogs that had been in fight rings. The probablility of the dog attacking officers or innocents were too high. That was why they used specially trained dogs during raids or taking down suspects. They were easier to control and could stop an attack on demand.

But what Naruto peeked his interest. It would be a different way to take down the ring. Any cop they tried to take inside were immediately spotted and taken out. They thought that a different approach was needed, hence the dog fights, but if what Naruto suggested could work, then the posssibility of them getting a man inside would be easier.

"Three months," said Kakashi. "I'll give you three months after his injuries healed, and I'll be supervising. I don't want this to go belly up. I'll talk to Narcotics about your little experiment, and if they give it the okay, then we'll do it."

Naruto jumped Kakashi and hugged him tightly.

"Thanks, Kakashi-sensei!" he said. "I gotta go tell Kurogane."

He ran out of the door before Kakashi could say another word. Shaking his head, Kakashi looked at the cage.

"Sorry, boy," he said.

Hachiko whined.

XXXXXX

Sasuke looked up as the door opened and Naruto walked in. he carried a brown bag that Sasuke knew held a meatloaf that Naruto cooked up just for him. It hadn't taken long for the vets and Naruto to figure out that Sasuke refused to eat the dry dog food that was served to the recovering canines and even turned his nose from the wet canned dog food. The only thing he did eat was the food Naruto brought him. Sasuke wouldn't admit, even if he could, that he liked the food Naruto cooked. He had always heard that the man had an obsession with ramen when he was younger. Sasuke guessed that he had grown out of it.

"Hey, boy," said Naruto opening the cage. "Kiba said we'd get that cast off you soon and into a brace. Doesn't that sound great?"

It did. Sasuke couldn't wait to get back on his feet and back onto the streets again. He had spent the last four weeks doing nothing but watch dogs chase their tails and act like complete fools for the attention of people. Soon he'd be able to get away from this place.

"Kiba said I'd be able to take you home then," continued Naruto. "You won't be able to go upstairs yet, but I can put a doggy bed in the living room."

Sasuke groaned. Bad enough Naruto thought he "adopted" Sasuke, now he thought he'd take Sasuke home. Could his life get any worse?

"Gato escaped. Kakashi wanted me to go inside the dog fights. Even assigned me a specially trained dog to take with me."

 _'Good,'_ though Sasuke. _'Maybe then you'd leave me alone.'_

"So I asked him to assign you instead."

Sasuke looked at him in shock.

 _'You did what?!'_

"I figure you'll have a few week in the brace, but we'll start your training as soon as we get you home. I'll teach you how to find drugs, explosives, people. I already know you got the attack thing down, but we'll tweak it a bit."

Sasuke looked at Naruto in shock. Was he crazy? There was no way Sasuke was going to become a police dog. He was a stray, and nothing tied him down.

"If I don't, then I think Kakashi is going to put you down."

Sasuke snorted.

 _'Let him try,'_ he thought.

 **TBC**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Sasuke walked around the house. He couldn't say it was to his tastes, but it was a place to rest while he regained his strength. The brace had been taken off a week ago and his leg was now wrapped in an Ace bandage. With it he walked stiffly, but Kiba had exercise as he could without collapsing. Because of the cast, his leg near atrophied and he needed to build the muscles back up.

Sasuke had another reason. He wanted to regain his freedom. Naruto had talked about using him as a ploy to get into the dog fights. Sasuke wanted nothing to do with them anymore. He didn't care about the dogs or if there were drugs. It had nothing to do with him.

He looked around the living room. He still couldn't believe how it was decorated. It was like a woman had decorated it. Sasuke did hear that it used to be Naruto's mother's house, so he shouldn't be surprised that he kept some of her things, but the place looked virtually untouched. There were one or two items that he could see Naruto owning, like the newest action movie or a video game, but most of the items were kept.

Sasuke remembered Naruto ten years ago, sitting at his mother's grave and trying to keep from crying. Sasuke still couldn't figure out the reason why he gave the rose to Naruto. When he told his answer to Tsunade, he had been truthful. It was sad to lose a parent. When Sasuke heard of his own father's death, he was sad. Fugaku wouldn't have been winning any father of the year awards, but he was still Sasuke's father. He went to the funeral and watched from afar as Itachi and Mikoto lead the precession.

His leg twinged and he resisted the urge to whine. Kiba had stressed that Sasuke take it easy on his leg, but Sasuke ignored it. Despite his quick healing, the leg was slow to heal. Sasuke couldn't figure out why. He had broken bones before, and they always healed up within a day. Now it was taking months.

He turned back to the dog bed Naruto had placed on the living room floor. He couldn't climb stairs yet so he couldn't go to the "dog room". He was shocked to find out that Naruto had made a room for his dog. Kyuubi may be old and retired, but he still had the energy of a puppy. A perfect match for Naruto.

Sasuke laid down on the bed. It was surprisingly comfortable. Naruto had bought it at the pet store Kiba's father own with a family and friends discount. Naruto even padded it with a blanket. He was always thinking of things like that.

Speaking of Naruto, he should be waking up soon. Idly, Sasuke wonder if Naruto was going to make his spicy frittata. Sasuke was surprised to find that the blonde could cook. Looked like Naruto found something to else to stuff in his face other than ramen.

He heard a door opening and another door closing. Naruto was doing his morning ritual before making breakfast. The bathroom door opened and Naruto walked down the stairs yawning. He wore a bright orange shirt and black boxers. He scratched his head lazily as Kyuubi followed down the stairs behind him.

"Hey, boy," said Naruto, greeting Sasuke as he walked into the living room. "Did you have a good sleep?"

 _'I slept better than you,'_ thought Sasuke as Naruto knelt next to him. At least he did pet him. Sasuke barked at the last person who tried that. _'What kind of police officer sleeps until seven thirty when they have the morning shift?'_

Sasuke had been awake when Naruto walked in at three in the morning. The man looked beat and barely made it up the stairs to his room before Sasuke heard the telltale snores. Since Naruto didn't have a canine partner yet, Kakashi had him on deskwork until Sasuke was medically cleared for work.

"How about a frittata today?" asked Naruto getting up. "Then we'll take our walk."

Sasuke groaned. For the past week, Naruto had been taking him to the the park to train while Kyuubi stayed home. The grandson of a neighbor, Konohamaru, walked Kyuubi every evening for some extra money since Kyuubi's retirement two months ago.

"You'll get that bandage off soon too," said Naruto. "Isn't that great?"

That was the only possitive thing about this arrangement in Sasuke's opinion. He only had another week to put up with the bubbling blonde.

Slowly getting to his feet, Kurogane followed Naruto into the kitchen. Naruto first gave Kyuubi a can of premade dog food, which the red retriever eagerly ate. Then he started making his and Sasuke's breakfast. Naruto learned notlong after meeting Kurogane that the dog wouldn't eat anything packaged or canned. So, Naruto began cooking Kurogane's food with his own. It was actually gratifying, making food for someone other than himself, even if it was his dog.

Naruto made the frittata for himself and Kurogane and ate. Despite being a dog, Kurogane ate with the patience of a human. Kurogane was a mystery, which was one reason why he adopted the dog. When he first visit after nearly running him over, instead of barking up a storm he seemed to study his surroundings and seemed to have an almost intelligence behind his brown eyes. Naruto wanted to learn why Kurogane was unlike any dog he had ever seen.

Naruto finished his breakfast and washed both his and Sasuke's plates. Sasuke refused to eat from a dog bowl. Naruto went to find his shoes. He always lost the second one and it would take him ten minutes to find it. Usually under the couch or the chair.

"Where is it?" said Naruto looking under the couch for the third time. This time with a flashlight.

Sasuke snorted. No wonder the blonde has a tracker dog. He needed one just to find his shoes. Gingerly getting to his feet, he walked to the bookcase and pawed behind it. How it had gotten behind there, he could only guess. He snorted against the smell of old sweat coming from it and barked toward Naruto. No way was he putting that in his mouth.

Naruto looked up and grinned.

"How did you know where it was," said Naruto walking over and picking it up.

 _'Because I could smell it,'_ thought Sasuke as he watched Naruto put his shoe on and pick up Sasuke's leash.

"Come on, boy," said Naruto.

Sasuke rolled his eyes before walking over to the blonde. He allowed Naruto to clip the leash on him and followed him out of the apartment. Kyuubi ignored their departure for the food.

Sasuke stayed beside Naruto as they walked. He didn't really need the leash, but he didn't want to be caught by the dog catchers. He wasn't going to let that happen again.

Coming into the park, Naruto took out his music player and put on earphones in his ears and Sasuke's heightened ears could make out "Supermassive Black Hole" by Muse playing through the tiny speakers. He didn't know Naruto liked that kind of music. It was certainly different than what he thought.

They jogged around the park for almost a half hour before they ran into someone they knew.

"Naruto, hi!"

Naruto turned to the voice and smiled.

"Hinata-chan! Hi" said Naruto turning to his friend. She was pushing a stroller with a small white dog jogging beside her. Naruto crouched beside the stroller. "Hello, Himawari-chan!"

The toddler babbled. Sasuke sat on the ground and waited for Naruto to finish talking to Hinata so they could continue their walk. He needed to strengthen his leg. The puppy was tugging on the leash attatched to the stroller, too energetic to stay still long enough for Hinata to talk. The stroller tugged forward with it as it barked at the joggers and dog walkers around them.

 _'Stupid dog,'_ thought Sasuke and snorted a laugh.

"How is Kurogane doing?" asked Hinata.

"He's doing okay, but he's got a stubborn streak. He keeps trying to walk up the stairs even though he knows he can yet," said Naruto. "Luckily, the wrap comes off soon."

"Yes," said Hinata with a nod.

Sasuke listened to all of this with half an ear. The rest of it was on the puppy as it tugged on the leash, nearly toppling the stroller. Last thing Sasuke wanted was a crying baby. The screeching would hurt his ears. Sasuke barked a warning and the puppy immediately stopped. Naruto and Hinata looked at him worried.

"Are you sure he's safe?" asked Hinata worried.

"He's hasn't attacked anyone yet," said Naruto. "Maybe he doesn't like energetic puppies."

 _'Give the dope a medal,'_ thought Sasuke.

"Kiba's worried that you were too impulsive in adopting him."

Naruto rubbed his head laughing.

"Maybe, but I have a feeling about this one."

"I hope you're right, Naruto-kun."

Sasuke tuned out the rest of it as he watched the toddler. She could have been no more than a year old and was reaching toward Sasuke determiningly. Sasuke just sat next to Naruto and stared out at the park. The toddler started to whimper and Sasuke fought a groan. Both humans didn't notice the baby's actions.

 _'I don't cuddle, kid,'_ said Sasuke.

Tears started to fall as the baby whimpered, reaching toward Sasuke. Sighing, Sasuke moved closer to the stroller and allowed the baby to fist his fur.

 _'Just don't get snot on me.'_

Himawari giggled as she pulled on Sasuke's fur. She grabbed it with both hands tugged for Sasuke to move closer, but the canine stayed right where he was. The toddler lean forward and buried her face in Sasuke's fur.

 _'Dope, the brat's getting snot in my fur._ '

"Will you look at that," said Naruto looking down at his dog.

Both turned to see Sasuke standing perfectly still as Himawari played with Sasuke's fur, and Sasuke not protesting. He gave Naruto a pointingly annoyed look.

 _'You are giving me a bath later,'_ he said.

"That dog doesn't let anyone touch him without growling, not even me," said Naruto.

"We had to sedate him just to get him in the brace," said Hinata in awe as she watched her daughter play with the black dog.

 _'I'm still getting you back for that,'_ said Sasuke.

"It's strange though," said Hinata leaning down to look more closely at Sasuke.

 _'Hey, back off, Hyuga!'_

"What is?" asked Naruto.

"His eyes seem almost human."

"He does?" said Naruto leaning down to look at Sasuke's eyes.

 _'Dope!'_ Sasuke growled silently.

"I don't see it," said Naruto.

"Well, there difference is subtle, but I swear they look human to me," said Hinata.

"Weird," said Naruto.

They talked a couple minutes about Sasuke's next appointment before Naruto continued on his jog. As they jogged, Naruto looked down at Sasuke.

"Why did you let Himawari-chan touch you, Kurogane?' he asked. "You barely let me."

 _'Because you're not a baby that'll blast my eardrums with her screeching,'_ thought Sasuke.

"Well, let's get you a bath before work," said Naruto and they started jogging back to the house.

The bath consisted of Naruto pulling out tub and filling it with water. Sasuke jumped in and rolled around the water to get really wet and allowed Naruto to scrub shampoo on him. Bathing was the only time Sasuke allowed Naruto to touch him. When Naruto was finished and washed the suds off. Kyuubi jumped in as soon as Sasuke stepped out and shook the water off him.

"You're more snippy than Ino," said Naruto as Sasuke shook himself.

 _'Unlike you, I know how to get clean,'_ said Sasuke flicking his tail at Naruto and sending large drops of water at the blonde. Naruto laughed as the water hit his face.

"Hey!"

"Naruto!"

Both man and canine turned to they yell and saw Sai standing at the fence. He wore mostly black and had a backpack. Naruto laughed.

"Sai!" he said jumping up from the ground and ran over to greet his friend. "What are you doing here?"

"Making sure you're still on for Friday," said Sai leaning against the fence. Sasuke glared at him in annoyance.

 _'Who's this guy?'_ he asked. Sasuke knew some of Naruto's friends from high school since they were also on the soccer team, but he had never met this one before.

"Duh," said Naruto. "I wouldn't miss it."

Naruto had met Sai on his first day on the force, which also happened to have been his first crime scene. Sai was taking pictures for the evidence file and both struck up an instant friendship.

Sasuke watched the interaction between Naruto and the new guy. Sai leaned against the fence while Naruto stood in front of Sai, their faces inches from each other. He didn't like the familiarity both seemed to have with each other, and he especially didn't like the tight feeling in his chest.

"Is that the new dog you were talking about?" asked Sai nodding to Sasuke.

"Yep," said Naruto happily, turning to Sasuke. "That's Kurogane. Hey, boy, come say hi to Sai."

Sasuke scoffed. _'Not on your life.'_

Sai laughed.

"Wow, he's got an attitude," said Sai.

"Yeah, reminds me of this guy I knew."

Sai laughed louder.

"That's sad when a dog reminds you of a guy you knew. Ex-boyfriend?"

Naruto shook his head and looked away with a sad look in his eyes.

"No, just someone."

Sai nods in understanding. He suddenly smiled with an idea.

"Hey, want me to take a picture with you two together?" he asked.

"Yeah!"

 _'No.'_

Sai took a camera out of his bag as Naruto ran over to Sasuke and sat as close to the canine as he could without getting bitten.

 _'Dope, I'm mostly wet! I'm not having my picture taken after a bath!'_

"Smile!" said Sai.

Sasuke turned just as the flash went off. Sai smiled at the picture.

"I think that's pretty good," said Sai showing it to Naruto.

"Hey, that's pretty good," said Naruto. "What are you doing taking pictures of crime scenes?"

"To catch bad guys same as you," said Sai. "I better go. I'll send you a copy."

"Yep!" said Naruto and waved Sai off.

Sighing, Naruto turned back to see Sasuke giving him a look.

"What?" he asked.

Sasuke scoffed and turned away.

Why did he have a sudden urge to rip the throat out of a man he had just met?both Naruto and that guy were too familiar with each other. There was no evidence of a boyfriend and Naruto never mention liking anyone. Sasuke knew because Naruto had a habit of talking to his "pets", although Sasuke thought that was a habit for any pet owner.

Before turning into a dog, Sasuke thought that owning a pet meant the person was lonely and wanted some sort of companionship in their lives. It was one of the reasons why he never owned one. Another was that Fugaku never could stand animals.

After living with Naruto, he noticed that although the blonde lived alone, he wasn't completely alone. He had friends that visited on a regular basis, and he went out at least once a week. He watched them interact saw the difference between Naruto's friends and his former gang. They genuinely care about each other. Suigetsu and Karin didn't even have that with him. Juugo might have, but the teenager had been so soft spoken that no one really knew what was on his mind.

It got him wondering, did he even really have friends or were they using him for their own gain?

Walking through the doggy door, he walked into the living room and curled up on his bed to rest his leg. Naruto would take him to the police station in a few hours and they would start training.

He couldn't wait to get the brace off.

 **TBC**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"That's it, Kurogane! Go, go, go!"

If Sasuke could smirk, he would have. Naruto lead him through a series of obstacles in the K-9 training yard. Since he had the brace taken off a week ago, Naruto had been training him to become a drug sniffing dog, going lightly on the exercises, per doctor's orders. Personally, Sasuke wanted to do harder exercises, but Naruto controlled what Sasuke did on the training field.

All around him, other dogs trained in different obstacles, each one professionally handled by their humans and each not making a sound as they did. The captain of the department was a man by the name of Kakashi Hatake and his canine partner was a pug. Pakun was an unusually quiet dog and never barked at anything that didn't annoy him. Sasuke found the little dog an annoyance simply by the smug look on it's face.

Not far from the course was a woman that bore a surprising resemblance to Kiba. Complete with the tattoo fang markings on her cheeks. Her canine partner Sasuke swore was part wolf, it was the size and figure of one, and watched the other dogs with a cold look. What was also surprising was the scar that ran down the dog's right eye. Somehow, the eye had been spared, but the scar gave the animal a mean look.

The other trainer that caught Sasuke's eye was a woman with ridiculously long hair held back in a ponytail. Next to her was black German shepard, sitting perfectly still as if he had nothing better to do. That had to be Kin Tsuchi and Senbon. Sasuke had heard Naruto complain about that pair more than once, which was odd for the blonde. In the month he had been living with Naruto, the blonde seemed to get along with everyone, except for Gato and an ex-boyfriend, but according to him, Kin was a bragger. She would brag about how man perps her canine partner had taken down and how easily he complete courses. Even now, she was retelling how she and her dog had caught a rapist to a disinterested officer. Naruto was right, she was a bragger.

There was something about the woman that was familiar to Sasuke. She didn't look familiar, but she smelled familiar and Sasuke couldn't place it, which annoyed him. Uchiha's had excellent memory. They never forgot anything if it was important.

Sasuke had been coming to the training field for two weeks, and he had his cast off for a week. Naruto had moved his bed to the doggy room and he was going on walks longer. He was planning on leaving soon. Getting rid of the collar shouldn't be hard. Leather expanded when wet.

He felt an ache in his chest. It happened every time he thought about leaving Naruto. Why he would feel sad about it, he didn't know. Naruto was the loudest, most annoying person he had ever met when he was high school, but now the blonde seemed to have toned down his hyperactiveness and volume.

"Good job, Kurogane," said Naruto after Sasuke finished the course and gave Sasuke one of his homemade cookies. It was just to keep from getting hungry. Not that he liked them or anything.

"New record, Naruto!" said Hina who was timing them. "I don't think Kyuubi did that well."

 _'Because Kyuubi couldn't stick his head in the toilet without a treat being in the bowl,'_ thought Sasuke.

"I have to say, Naruto, Kurogane is coming along faster than I thought," said Kakashi walking up to the pair. Sasuke smirked with pride.

"I told you, Kakashi," said Naruto looking down at Kurogane. "He's smart."

"A dog is only as smart as his owner," said Kin. Naruto turned an annoyed look at her. "Which means he's not very smart at all."

Naruto's face burned red and Sasuke growled softly. Nobody called an Uchiha an idiot.

"Where did you even get that dog?" she asked looking at Sasuke. "It looks like something that belongs in a dog pound."

"Shut up!" yelled Naruto, stepping toward her. All thought of his mother telling him not to hit a woman first went out the window."How dare you..."

Kakashi grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"Easy, Naruto," said Kakashi. He turned to Kin. "You know the rules, Kin. You got a problem, take it up on the course. Naruto has been working hard with Kurogane. You should know better than to smack talk someone else's training."

Kin shrugged. "Only saying the truth."

Naruto moved toward her again when he felt something tug on his leg. Looking down, he saw his dog have a hold of his pant leg. Dark brown eyes look up at him with a slight annoyance, but also an eerie calm. He again saw that spark of awareness.

Sasuke had grabbed Naruto's leg to keep him from attacking the woman. In the years Sasuke had seen Naruto before transforming into a canine, he had heard Naruto be insulted on more than one occasion, sometimes several times a day, but not once did he raise his voice or his fist in defense of himself. One day when he was talking with Neji whose father was business associate of Fugaku, he told of when Naruto pummeled a bully's face in for making fun of Hinata's stutter.

Sasuke had learned a lesson about Naruto that day. Don't make fun of his friends.

Sasuke walked around Naruto and growled at the woman. He really didn't like her. She insulted him. He may have a dog's body, but he was still human, and he knew a challenge when he saw one.

Kin looked at the dog with a frown. Did the canine actually think it can hurt her? She had been around the most vicious dogs man could ever raise. Not one scared her.

"I think you've got yourself a challenger," said Kakashi looking between the dog and the woman. Kin laughed.

"Like that dog can challenge my Senbon," she said laughing.

"Afraid?" asked Naruto with a smirk. Sasuke snorted with a soft laugh. Really, that would be something he would have said.

"I'm not afraid of losing to a man and his mutt," said Kin. "I accept."

Kakashi nodded.

"Clear the course!" he yelled. "We've got a challenge."

Murmurs went through the trainers as they moved their dogs to the sides of the field. Sasuke could hear them making bets on who would win. He didn't like that the favor went to Kin.

"All right," said Kakashi when the obstacle course cleared. "You all know the rules. The first canine to complete the obstical course with the least amount of time wins. Dogs on the marks."

Naruto unclipped Sasuke from the leash. One of the rules was that the dog was unleashed during the challenge. It made it more interesting. Naruto looked Sasuke in the eyes.

"You can back out, Kurogane," he said. "You don't have to do this."

Sasuke huffed. _'Yes, I do.'_

Sasuke walked to the mark. Kin had Senbon by the collar, the black dog already itching to go. Naruto stood beside Sasuke, waiting for the signal.

"Get set," said Kakashi. Senbon tensed next to Sasuke. Sasuke just waited. "Go!"

Both dogs took off. The crowd cheered for their favorite. Sasuke and Senbon jump through the truck tires first before climbing up the stairs. Passing that, they jumped over a small five foot long pond. Sasuke was slowly gaining the lead, especially when he was the first through the tube. Then he came to the wall.

The wall was only three feet high, but he could easily jump through it. He was getting ready when he felt a sharp pain in his flank and he yelped, which angered him. Uchiha's didn't yelp. He missed the jump and collided into the wall instead of going over it. Senbon jumped over.

Sasuke growled. The bastard canine cheated. Backtracking a bit, he jumped over the wall and charged toward the dog. Senbon was nearing the end of the course which was a row of hedges as Sasuke caught up. Both dogs jumped over the five hedges and stopped nearly at the same time.

"Photo finish," said Kakashi holding up his phone, recording the entire challenge. He replayed the ending to determine the winner. "And the winner is...Kurogane, by a nose."

"Whoo-hoo!" yelled Naruto, jumping up and down estatically. Beside him, Sasuke gave a wolfish grin."We won! We won! I'm buying the first round!"

The crowd cheered, except for Kin who left with a huff. Senbon followed after her. He ran over to Kakashi and held out a hand.

"Give," he said.

Kakashi groaned and pulled out his wallet. He pulled out a twenty and handed it to Naruto.

"He's getting better," said Kakashi. "Training faster than I thought. You might just win our bet."

Grinning, Naruto stuffed it in his pocket before turning to Sasuke. Taking out his bagful of treats, he gave Sasuke one before handing one to Hana and she gave it to her canine partner. There as a crackle over the P.A.

"We have a raid in progress. K-9 unit needed on scene."

"All right, everyone, let's go!" yelled Kakashi. Everyone immediately grabbed their dogs and ran inside to gear up, even Naruto. "Not you, Uzumaki."

"But..."

"Kurogane's not a registered K-9 yet. Until then, he can't be on scene."

"But what if it's Gato?" asked Naruto.

"Then we'll take care of him. Train your dog, Naruto. We've got this."

Kakashi turned and left the training yard. Naruto stood and watched as his captain and mentor left with the rest of the unit.

It felt odd to be left out. All his life, Naruto wanted to be a part of something, which was why he wanted to join the police force. It wasn't just because of his parents. The police force had always made him feel as a part of a family. On days when Kushina couldn't find a babysitter, she would take Naruto into the station and the desk sergeant, Iruka, would watch him while Kushina went on patrol.

Iruka was like a father to him, always bringing him coloring books or video games to entire himself or help him with his homework. And sometimes books for him to read. If it hadn't been for Iruka, Naruto was sure he would have never passed high school. He always joked that Iruka should have been a teacher instead of a cop, even started calling him "Iruka-sensei." That gave him a couple cuffs to the head, but he knew Iruka didn't mind.

Now, he was left behind. He knew it couldn't be helped, but it still gave him a stab of loneliness at being left out of taking down a criminal. Especially if that criminal was Gato. The thought of what he was doing to dogs disgusted Naruto. He had grown up to respect his canine partner, not use or abuse them.

Sighing, he looked down at the canine beside him.

"Hey, boy, how about a game of Hide-and-Seek?"

'You mean the game where you hide the drugs and I find them?'

Grinning, Naruto lead Sasuke back to the training ground. Sasuke followed.

 **TBC**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"Okay, you two be good, now," said Naruto to his two dogs as he walked out the door. Walking to his beat up red truck, he started the engine and drove out onto the street.

Every week, Naruto and his friends gather to a local bar near the police station, The Lillypad. It was owned by Jiraiya Sannin, Naruto's godfather and the closest man Naruto had to a grandfather. Him and his wife were the ones who took care of him in when his mother had gone to work and when she had died. He was supportive of Naruto's goal and even helped him train and study during his academy days. He opened the bar when he retired from the force, but it was mostly to support himself since his novels weren't as popular as he makes them out to be.

When he arrived, most of his friends were already there. Sai was saving him a seat between himself and Kiba. Sai saw him first and waved him over.

"Naruto, over here," he said.

"Hey, guys," said Naruto walking over to the table. "Where's Ino?"

"She's got a major court date tomorrow and she's reviewing her notes," said Sai.

"She'll be fine," said Naruto. "She's one of the strongest women we know."

"Yeah," said Sai.

"Hey, Naruto," said Kiba. "We heard that Kurogane passed his test."

"Yeah," said Naruto proudly. "With flying colors. I told Kakashi I could train him in just three months. He had the basic training already, and he's smart. I knew he'd get it quick."

"It usually takes a year to train and officiate a dog, doesn't it?" asked Neji. Neji was on Vice and while they regularly used dogs on their raids, he never handled one himself.

"Yeah, but Kakashi made a special exception with me." Naruto didn't say it was because they needed Kurogane to uncover Gato's hidden drug and dog fight ring. If he did, he was more than certain that Sakura would have a fit and Kiba would try to hog-tie him in a corner.

Over the past several weeks of training, Kurogane had displayed more and more signs of intelligence that he had never seen in any dog. At times he swore it was almost human-like in nature. He would locate items Naruto misplaced too easily, and Naruto had a nasty habit of misplacing items. He even put the keys to his car in the fridge. How Kurogane found them in there Naruto never knew.

"So what are you going to do now?" asked Sakura. Naruto was amazed that she actually got out of the Medical Examiner's office to see him. Last he heard, she had been swamped by three murders and a suspected murder/suicide.

"Wherever Kakashi sends me," said Naruto. "I can't wait to bust up some bad guys again."

"You sound as excited as a kid at Christmas," said TenTen.

"It is inspiring to see Naruto wish to fulfill his dream of being a law enforcement officer," said Lee.

"Okay, who gave Lee alcohol?" asked Kiba and the group laughed. It was an ongoing joke on how Lee could not hold his liquor. On his wedding, Kiba and Choji thought it to be a good idea to bring copious amounts of alcohol and share it. Lee only had one shot of tequila and was dancing the bar stripping. Sakura had a field day with the guys that day.

"You just be careful out there, Naruto," said Sakura. "I worry about you enough, I don't want tosee you on a slab in my morgue."

"Yes, Mom," Naruto said with sarcastic humor and ducked to avoid the fist aimed at him head.

"Jerk!" she said in a soft huff and took a sip of her fruity drink. For the next couple hours, Naruto listened as the parents in their kids. When the music turned upbeat and that perked Naruto up.

"Come on, Hinata, let's dance!" he said grabbing her wrist and pulling the blushing woman onto the dance floor. Kiba gave no protest. He rather have her dance with Naruto than some stranger. The gang watched as the two danced to the music.

"Are you sure he's not crazy?" asked TenTen. "I don't know much about dogs, but trying to rehabilitate a pit dog..."

"It can't be done," said Kiba. "Trust me on that. Some trainers may be able to get them domesticated enough to possibly be a house dog, and that could take years. As a K-9 dog, not likely."

"Then how is Naruto so sure?" asked Sakura.

"I don't know, but Hinata said something strange the other day."

"What did she say?" asked Lee.

"She told me how she met Naruto and the dog at the park, and the dog let Himawari pet him."

The girls gasped as the men looked in shock.

"Is she hurt? Is she okay?" asked Sakura, worried.

"She's fine," said Kiba. "The dog actually sat there and let Himawari play with his fur, like she does with Akamaru. But that wasn't the really strange thing."

"What was?" asked Neji.

"She said his eyes looked almost human."

That got the group stumped. How can a dog's eye looked human? Was there a difference? But what was also strange was hearing the way the dog acted around the toddler. Kiba had explained pit dogs to them and the near impossibility of their rehabilitation, so to hear that one was letting a two year old grab its fur and slobber all over it was very strange indeed. The friends didn't know what to make of that.

Naruto meanwhile, was having fun dancing with Hinata. The shy raven haired girl was usually such a wallflower unless dragged on the floor by either Naruto or the girls. Kiba sometimes managed to get her to dance, but usually obeyed his wife's wishes and stayed on the sidelines.

Naruto remembered Hinata from when they were kids. As the hieress of a large company and prostigious family, both six year old shouldn't have been able to meet, but Hinata's sudden kidnapping brought them together. It had been Kushina and Kurama who had found Hinata and brought her to the station. Naruto had been playing with one of the trainee dogs at the time and showed Hinata how to pet one. For a half hour they had been playing all sorts of games with the dog until her parents came for her.

They reunited again at the age of twelve when Hinata had joined her school's cheerleading squad in an attempt to socialize more and accompied them on their soccer teams away games. They talked between and after games and exchanged addresses and phone numbers.

Their friendship grew and they reunited again in college, where Naruto introduced her to Kiba and everything progressed from their. Naruto had known of the crush that Hinata had on him, and wasn't surprised when she confessed, and shot him down in the same sentence. She had figured out his sexual preference and wished him happiness. Six months later, she was dating Kiba and the rest was history.

Naruto thought of Hinata as a sister and treated her as such, and all of his friends knew it. Kiba never had to worry when Naruto danced with her or teased her in his friendly prankster way. It was his way of getting Hinata to join in and help get over her shyness.

He was also very protective of her. After her abduction, her father had signed her and her younger sister up for several martial arts lessons and excelled in all of them. Even though she had several black belts, she avoided violence as much as possible. She only had to use her training once, and Naruto was glad for it.

They danced on the floor and laughed at the ridiculousness of their moves when a man stepped behind Hinata. Despite her over shyness, she was a pretty woman and would easily get the attention of any man in the room, so it infuriated Naruto to see the man leering down at Hinata like she was a piece of steak.

"How about dancing with me than that guy,babe," he said with a sneer.

Naruto grabbed Hinata and pulled her behind him and glared up at the man.

"She's married, asshole," he said.

"See no ring on your finger, so it ain't with you," said the man with a lusty laugh. "Guess she's not too in love with her hubby."

"Actually, her hubby's behind you," said Naruto with a sneer. The man turned to see Kiba, Choji, Neji, Lee and Sai standing behind him. "And the man behind him with the long hair giving you the stink eye, that's her cousin, and this is a cop bar, and you just challenged a cop so..."

The guy looked around and saw that almost every patron was staring at him. He immediately figured out what a bad decision he made and backed out, but not before he gave Naruto a murderous sneer.

"Bastard," said Kiba glaring at the man's back.

"Asshole," agreed Naruto. He turned to Hinata who looked a little shaken, but luckily not scared. "You okay?"

"Yes," she said with a nod. "I'm sorry."

"Not you're fault," said Naruto. "Guy was an asshole who didn't know what 'Off limits' meant."

"Come on, babe," said Kiba, "let's sit you down."

Hinata nodded and followed Kiba back to the booth. The rest of the guys followed, except Sai who turned to Naruto.

"You coming?" he asked.

"Nah, I'm going to get some air," said Naruto. "Save my seat?"

"Yeah."

Sai turned back to the booth as Naruto wove through the dancing crowd toward the door. Walking to the side of the builing, he took a deep breath and leaned against the wall.

Naruto hated comfrontation. He'd just as soon go without it, even on a raid. Most people thought that the K-9 unit didn't see any action, but that wasn't true. They saw as much as any other police officer. Their dogs were trained to not just search for drugs and explosives, but also to take down a suspect if needed. There were even corpse dogs that found dead bodies.

Naruto had trained Kyuubi to do all of those things. It helped to have a canine that was diverse. He could only train Kurogane in the basic of drug sniffing. The black dog already had the basics of attacking down and all that Naruto had to do was teach him to do it on command. Kurogane was surprisingly a quick learner, which Naruto had suspected.

He didn't know what was so different about the dog. He was a surly and stoic as any human being. If he didn't know better, he would have thought that Kurogane was a human in a dog's clothing. There was no way a dog was that smart.

He heard a clatter and turned to see the man he had chased off standing in the front of the alley. He groaned. This guy was either drunk or stupid, or both. The worst idea ever made was to assualt a cop outside of a cop bar.

"Hey, man, whatever you're thinking, not a good idea," he said.

"I hate being humilated, especially from upstart punks like you," said the man.

"Oh, punk, haven't been called that in a long time," said Naruto. "Look, I'm just giving you a chance to back out now."

That was the last thing Naruto said before the man charged him.

XXXXXX

Sasuke watched as Naruto left, sitting next to the couch. Unlike Kyuubi, he refused to lay on the couch like an insipid lap dog waiting for treats and attention.

He actually didn't mind Kyuubi. The older dog was getting on in years and spent most of the dog sleeping. The only time he was awake was when he was eating or going for his walk. He never bothered Sasuke since Sasuke never bothered him. Sometimes during their walks when Naruto played with them, Kyuubi would try to play with him as well, but Sasuke never participated.

The only problem Sasuke had was at night. Although they had seperate beds, Kyuubi would climb into his and sleep on top of him. That annoyed Sasuke to no end and every time he tried to push the older dog off, Kyuubi would growl and nip Sasuke's ear. Sometimes, Sasuke would be able to roll the canine onto his side.

Sasuke swore most of the dog's personality came from association with the blonde. Like Naruto, Kyuubi loved to play and would often try to include Sasuke in his games. Most of the time he was unsuccessful, but sometimes, Sasuke would join in just to throw suspicion off. It would look weird if a dog did not play Fetch or Tug-of-War with another dog in a dog park.

Now was the perfect opportunity to escape. Sasuke had been watching Naruto over the past couple of weeks. Aside from work, Naruto stayed mostly at home. Except for every Friday when he would leave to hang out with friends.

And Sai.

Sasuke didn't know why the thought of Naruto and Sai together made his fur brissle. It was no business of his who Naruto decided to spend time with. They never went out, nor were they friends. They were rivals and that was it.

Although, they did look close the other day when Sai came over, and what kind of person carried a camera around randomly snapping pictures, especially of their "friends"? Was he a stalker? There was something off about him, and it wasn't just his fake smile.

Sasuke shook that thought out of his head. It was none of his business. Right now, he had to think of a way to escape. Getting up, he walked over to the front door. Like every time he left, Naruto locked the front door, but only the deadlock. Sasuke knew he could probably reach it thanks to his height and probably unlike it, but the problem was the doorknob. It wasn't a long handled one, but a turn knob. He might be able to do it if he used his teeth.

Sasuke knew he wouldn't be able to close the door after opening it. He didn't think that Kyuubi would run off. That dog was too loyal for his own good. Naruto had left the door open mulitple times, and Kyuubi never went outside unless ordered to by Naruto.

Sasuke was actually surprised by this. Depsite his personality, Naruto was a pretty good dog trainer. His mother probably taught him everything she knew and he picke dup a couple of tips from the Inuzukas. Looks like he wasn't as much as a dope as Sasuke first thought.

Walking up to the door, he reared up on his hind legs and placed his paws on either side of the door. Using his claws, he turned the bolt down and turned his attention to the doorknob. Opening his mouth as wide as he could, he used his teeth and whole mouth to turn the knob and smirked when he heard it click. Still on his hind legs, he walked backwards until he had it opened enough to slip through.

Finally, he was free, he thought as he ran down the street. He wasn't too worried about the collar. He'd find a way to get rid of it. It was a basic fabric collar, so get it wet and he could easily slip out of it.

Taking a deep breath, he exalled in his newfound freedom. After a year stuck in a cage and six months in domestication, he loved the ability to go wherever he wanted whenever he wanted. He wasn't too worried about Naruto. He had Kyuubi and Sasuke was sure the department would assign him another dog to portray a fight dog. He may not look it, but Naruto was smart. He'd figure it out.

Sasuke shook his head. Oh God, he just gave the moron a compliment. The world was coming to an end.

For hours, he walked, not really caring where he went, he just let his feet go wherever they wanted, so it came as a surprise when his nose came upon a familiar citrus scent.

Naruto was nearby. He doubted anyone else would wear that scent. Before he realized what he was doing, he walked toward the scent and found himself in an alley beside a bar. His eyes quickly adjusted to the dark and was surprised by what he saw.

Naruto was struggling against another guy who was obvious bigger than him. What the hell did Naruto do to get himself into trouble this time. And by the look of him, he wasn't fairing too well.

Sasuke gaped in shock when the man picked up a discard beer bottle and broke it against the dumpster. He barked and the man turned around, as did Naruto.

"Kurogane?" said Naruto in surprise.

Before his mind could tell his body not to, Sasuke ran toward the man and knocked him aside. The man managed to get a cut into Sasuke's leg and he cried out from the shock of pain. Landing on the ground, he held his injured leg up as he turned back to the man and growled. The man raised the bottle to stab him.

"Fucking mutt!"

He slashed down and Sasuke waited for the pain to come, but it never did. A black blur pushed in front of Sasuke and blocked the man's attack. The sharp copper scent of blood filled the air.

"Don't touch my dog!"

Sasuke looked up to see Naruto standing in front of him. The blonde glared at the man in front of him. The scent of blood was coming from him.

"Naruto!"

Sasuke barely heard Kiba's yell as he watched Naruto collapse. Blood covered Naruto's sunset yellow shirt and jacket. He watched as the blonde fell to the ground as his friends surrounded him. Suddenly, all he saw was red and he attacked.

The man yelled as Sasuke's teeth clamped onto his arm and his claws hooked into his clothes. He tasted blood in his mouth, his own snarls, yelling in his ear and felt hands grab him, but he refused to let go. He wanted to tear the man's throat out. All he could see was Naruto in front of him bleeding. Naruto smiling at him. Bathing him. Naruto got hurt because of him.

"Kurogane."

At first, the soft voice didn't register in Sasuke's brain, but somehow it penetrated Sasuke's daze. Letting go of the arm, he turned to see Naruto propped against a woman's chest. Sakura. Hinata was also beside him pressing a towel against his chest. The men were trying to wrestle Sasuke off of the assailant and keep hold of him.

Naruto was panting and holding one arm acrossed his chest to minimize the blood loss and the other limp on the ground. He looked pale, too pale for his skin tone, and struggling to stay awake.

Turning around, Sasuke walked toward Naruto, but stopped when a firm grip held onto his collar. He turned and growled at Kiba who was looking at him with a firm glare.

"No, mutt," he said tugging him away from Naruto.

"Kiba, let him go," said Naruto strained.

Kiba looked at Naruto, unsure, and Naruto nodded. Still unsure, Kiba let Sasuke go and the dog walked toward the blonde. Naruto laughed painfully.

"Hey, boy," he said . "Quite a pickle we're in."

 _'Why did you do that, you moron,'_ asked Sasuke as he stood next to Naruto. _'Why did you protect me?'_

"Are you okay, boy?" asked Naruto holding up his hand as if to pet Sasuke, but stopped and lowered his hand.

It never hit the ground. Sasuke lowered his head and set the hand on it. Naruto looked up in shock and Sasuke sat down next to him. Smiling, Naruto scratched behind an ear before his world went dark.

 **TBC**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"What do you think will happen now?" asked Sai.

Shikamaru turned to him. They were still in the alley where Naruto got assualted and where Naruto's dog conveniently saved him. Sakura, even though she was a medical examiner, demanded Lee's atrocious green shirt and used that as a bandage until the ambulance came. The ambulance had just left a minute ago with Naruto to take him to the hospital. The dog didn't even attempt to get in the ambulance, but had stayed close and followed the parametics to the vehicle. Now he sat at the entrance of the alley and seemed to be watching them.

It was kind of eerie.

They had just finished giving their statements to the officers and went to their cars to follow Naruto to the hospital. Kiba was talking to Shino and Choji on who was riding with whom to the hospital. Sakura had already gone since she had medical expertise, and it made the group feel better that she was with him.

"What do you mean," he asked.

"To Kurogane," said Sai. "He drew blood. Doesn't that mean they have to put him down?"

"Most situations, yes," said Shikamaru. "But this one will be a tough call. He's a trained police dog, and he was defending his partner. They might let him go."

"I hope so too."

"Hey, just what do you think you're doing?"

Both turned to see Hinata standing between Kurogane and a dog handler. By the catchpole in his hand, it was obviously why he was there. It was uncommon to see Hinata confront someone since she disliked violence, but when she does, it was always for the right reason.

"I was ordered the catch a blood thirsty dog," said the dog catcher. "Now move, lady."

"Bloody thirsty?" said Hinata angrily."This dog is a s blood thirsty as a radish!"

Behind her, the dog coughed and for a moment, Kiba was sure that he was laughing.

"Move it, or I'll make you," saud the dog catcher.

That immediately caught Kiba's attention he quickly joined his wife's side.

"What was that?" he said glaring at the man.

"I got a call from the police that a savage dog attacked a man. I'm here to take it away."

"This dog is not savage, and he belongs to a very good friend of ours," said Shkamaru walking up. "Now leave, before I arrest you."

"For what?"

"Assault. Leave."

the dog catcher glared at him before leaving. The group watched him leave with humorous smiles.

"You're a technical analyst," said Choji. "Can you arrest someone?"

"He didn't know that," said Shikamaru with a smirk. He turned to look at the dog who was watching them with interest.

Eerie.

"What are we going to do with him?" asked TenTen looking at the dog.

"Take him back to Naruto's," said Kiba. "Find out how he got out and check on Naruto at the hospital."

"Amazing, there's actually a thought in there," said Shikamaru. The dog coughed again.

"I'll take him," said Kiba. "Come, Kurogane."

The dog followed Kiba and Hinata to their car and got into the back. Hinata and Kiba got in the front and drove away.

"It is weird though," said Sai. "According to Naruto, the dog hardly let Naruto touch him. Only during baths. Now, the dog somehow got out of the house and followed Naruto here and defended Naruto? Why?"

"You'll have to ask Kiba," said Shikamaru. "I'm not much of a dog expert. Let's go."

The walked to their cars and drove to the hospital. As they knew, the hospital had been busy with people hurt. They walked up the the reception and spoke tot he nurse on call.

"Can we get some information on a patient that was brought in twenty minutes ago?" asked Neji. "Naruto Uzumaki?"

The nurse typed in the computer.

"He's still in surgery," she said before looking back up at them. "Relation?"

"We're his best friends and co-workers," said Choji.

"If you wait in the waiting room, the doctor will be with you as soon as she's able," said the nurse and went back to her computer.

They had no other choice but to sit down and wait. Sai excused himself for a few minutes to make a phone call, but other than that, they sat in mostly silence. The were too worried about thie r friend to speak.

XXXXX

Naruto groaned as he came to conciousness. His whole body ached, like a truck had rammed into him and broke every bone in his body, especially his chest. It was a struggle to get his eyes open and when he did, he saw Sakura standing by the edge of his bed reading his chart from the clipboard.

"Sakura-chan," he said, but his voice sounded sluggish. It was weird coming from him. She still turned to him and smiled when she saw him away.

"Naruto, thank God you're awake!" she said rushing to his side, and then punched him in the arm. Naruto cried out in pain as his whole arm flared up like fire had coursed through his arm.

"Argh! Sakura-chan! That hurt!" he said trying to grab his arm, but his movements were still sluggish and he managed to put his hand on his arm.

"That's what you get for scarying the shit out of us!" she yelled.

"What happened," he asked when he could get his mind working a bit.

"That's what we'd like to know," said Sakura. "Someone saw your fight and yelled to call the police. When we ran out, Kurogane had his fangs in that man's arm and you were bleeding on the ground."

"Am I in the hospital?"

"Yeah," said Sakura. "The doctor patched you up pretty good. You had to have thirty stitches for that cut on your chest and you're bruised up pretty bad. The doctor wants you to stay here for a couple days for observation."

"Kurogane? What about him?"

"Kiba and Hinata took him back to your house. They bandaged his leg and gave him a pain killer. They offered to take care of him and Kyuubi until you've recovered."

Well, they should know that Kurogane doesn't eat dog food. Never have. His favorite is roast chicken with fried tomatoes."

"A dog that doesn't eat dog food?" asked Sakura, shocked.

Naruto shrugged.

"Don't ask me. I've tried everything, but he wouldn't eat it."

"I don't doubt it. That dog is something. Wouldn't even leave your side when the paramedics arrived."

Sakura picked up a syringe and vial and inserted the needle through the rubber top.

"Really?" said Naruto in surprise.

"Yeah. That dog is weird. It's like he knows what we're saying or doing."

Naruto had to agree. Sometimes, it was like Kurogane knew what Naruto was saying or would intepret what Naruto wanted him to do. Naruto had gotten so used to it, he didn't think about it anymore.

Sakura inserted the needle into Naruto's IV.

"What's that?" he asked.

"Sedative," she said. "You're too wired to rest, and that's what you need. Without this, within ten minutes' you'll be running the place."

"Just my luck, I get the mean nurse."

Sakura laughed. A knock on the door pulled them away from thier conversation and Sakura opened it to show the rest of the gang waiting to be let in.

"Really, guy, you know the rules," said Sakura. Nine identical looks turned toward her and she sighed. "Come in. But only for a little while. I just gave him his sedative."

The group walked in and went to Naruto's bedside.

"Naruto-kun, how are you feeling," asked Hinata softly.

"Fine, but Nurse Stalin won't let me leave," said Naruto nodding his head to Sakura.

"Be lucky you have me," said Sakura, "because I'm one of a two people in this hospital that'll put up with you."

"Kiba, I need you to take care of my dogs," said Naruto, already feeling the effects of the sedative.

"Of course, man," said Kiba. "Kyuubi and the mutt will be there when you get home."

Naruto was having trouble keeping his eyes open, but he need to tell Kiba about Kurogane's feeding habits.

"Kuro...Kurogane..."

"I'll tell him, Naruto," said Sakura.

Naruto smiled appreciatively before going to sleep. Kiba chuckled.

"That guy," he said. "He'd lose his head if it wasn't attatched."

The others laughed softly. Although matured, Naruto was always the most reckless of the group. He always ran into a raid before anyone else. It was also what made Naruto such a pure person.

He was also the reason they were all friends. Somehow he had found ten people with diverse backgrounds and majors and made them all friends. Some of them had never even met until they met Naruto. He had a way of getting people together and getting them to get along.

"All right, let's go, guys," said Sakura softly. "Quietly now."

The group walked out of the room and Sakura silently closed the door to allow the room's occupant to sleep.

XXXXXX

Sasuke watched the door, his tail thumping the floor anxiously. He admitted he was. After the mutt and his wife brought Sasuke back to Naruto's house, Hinata bandaged his leg and left him and Kyuubi enough food to last a while, not that Sasuke would eat it. They left not long afterwards to the hospital to check on Naruto, and that had been hours ago. Since then, Kyuubi had not left his spot on Sasuke's bed.

Since his return, Sasuke couldn't stop thinking about Naruto's assualt. Why did he track Naruto?

Why did he save him? He didn't even think. He just ran at the man and attacked. He hadn't been close to Naruto no matter how much time they had spent together in the recent months.

Sasuke didn't know when or how, but he knew he was changing. The cut on his leg was proof of that. A year ago, whenever he had gotten hurt he would heal in a matter of hours or days. After the dobe hit him, it had taken him months to heal. He would have left as soon as he had healed, but he stuck around longer, and when he tried to leave that night, he unconciously tracked down Naruto and helped him during an assualt.

Not for the first time, he thought about why he was turned into a dog. From his point of view, dogs were annoying creatures that constantly begged for attention. Any loyalty they displayed was because of training. They responded to their owner's command just for a bit of attention and treat. He also doubt they knew anything about compassion or honesty or unselfishness.

He briefly thought about leaving again, but Hinata's words repeated in his mind. After she had bandaged him, she had hugged him. Normally, Sasuke wouldn't have allowed the contact, years of being homeless and later as a fighting dog made him suspicious of any physical contact, but he held still as the blue eyed raven hugged him.

"Thank you for saving him," she said before letting go and walked out with her husband.

The scene had shocked him. He couldn't remember the last time anyone thanked him past childhood. Probably because he never gave them a reason too. Not even his parents or Itachi thanked him for anything.

He was getting too close. He could feel it. Soft. It was a weakness he exploited from his opponents on the soccer field. It was what made him a good player, but now it was making him question his way of life. What was he supposed to do now?

Who was he now?

Sasuke walked to his bed and curled up around Kyuubi. The red labrador shifted to make room and both went to sleep and waited for the dobe's return.

 **TBC**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Where are my puppies?" called Naruto as he walked into the house.

Kyuubi runs up to Naruto and Naruto knelt down to receive Kyuubi's affectionate licks, wincing as he did. Even after spending a two days in the hospital, the heal cut on his chest hurt whenever he bend over or sat down. He would have gotten out sooner, but his doctor wanted him to stay in case of infection. He wanted to get back to work and his dogs, but his doctor ordered him off work until the stitches came out. Stupid old bat.

He looked up to see Kurogane sitting down behind Kyuubi, watching as the older dog greeted his master.

"Hey, Kuro-chan," he said, straightening. He winced as he pulled slightly on his stitches and walked over to the dog. "How are you doing?"

 _'I'm fine, and don't call me Kuro-chan,'_ said Sasuke as Naruto knelt in front of him. He lifted a hand as if to touch Sasuke's bandaged leg, but hesitated. Sighing, Sasuke held up his leg for Naruto to inspect. _'Such a softy.'_

"How did you get out. I was sure I locked the door," said Naruto as he inspected Sasuke leg.

 _'For a normal dog, but not me.'_

"We found scratch marks on the door," said Kiba walking in. "We think he clawed the lock open."

"He always was smart," said Naruto gently ruffling Sasuke fur. Sasuke snorted in annoyance.

 _'Watch the fur.'_

"The girls made enough food to last you a while," said Kiba as Naruto straightened and walked into the kitchen. "Although you might want to reconsider Lee's."

"Shut up," said Naruto smacking Kiba on the shoulder with his good arm. "How were my babies while I was gone?"

 _'I am no one's baby,'_ said Sasuke as he followed the two into the kitchen.

"That black mutt creeps me out," said Kiba. "He watches me like a freaking hawk."

 _'You know it's rude to talk about someone when they're in the room, right?'_ said Sasuke as he sat next to Naruto. He didn't know why, but he had a sudden need to be close to the blonde.

"That's just the way he is," said Naruto. "Did you feed him the way I told you to? He loves my Italian chicken."

Sasuke involuntarily licked his chops at the thought of the chicken seasoned with tomatoes and herbs. It was delicious.

"You know feeding a dog human food too much will give them stomach pains?" said Kiba. "I tried giving him dog food, but he turned his noise at it. You spoiled him, Naruto."

"I told you. I've tried to give him dog food, but he refuses to eat it. If I hadn't, he would have starved."

"That's not typical dog behavior, Naruto. Even you know that."

Naruto did, like a lot of things he noticed about Kurogane, but he just stopped noticing. Kurogane was a mystery and as much as Naruto wanted to uncover it, he knew it would be fruitless.

Kiba stayed an hour longer and they talked about the recent soccer game. They also planned for a get together with the rest of the gang next game day. When Kiba left, Naruto went to the kitchen to start on dinner.

"What do you say to tempura tonight, boy?" he asked taking out the ingredients. "Something a bit traditional."

 _'Just don't burn the house down,'_ said Sasuke as he watched Naruto prepare the shrimp.

As he watched Naruto fry the shrimp and vegetables he wondered why Naruto made a full course meal when it was just him. It couldn't be because of Sasuke. Was it theraputic, nostalgia, or both. For a single man, it didn't make a lot of sense to make a lot of food for one person instead of buying frozen meals.

"How about fry some of this?" asked Naruto holding up a cherry tomato with his chopsticks. Sasuke gave a soft growl.

 _'You don't fry tomatoes!'_ he said.

Naruto blinked in surprised and set the tomato back.

"Okay, okay, no fried tomatoes," he said.

A few minutes later, Naruto was putting the battered shrimp and vegetables into the fryer, carefully sliding each in to minamize the oil spitting. He yelped when a bit of oil spat on his hand and he dashed to the sink to wash the oil off in cold water. Sasuke huffed a laugh at the blonde's antics and Naruto glared at him.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, pup. You wouldn't be laughing if it spat on you."

 _'I wouldn't have let it spat on me,'_ said Sasuke.

It wasn't long until both companions were enjoying their dinner. It still amazed Sasuke that Naruto even knew how to cook. He guessed the chef/ex-boyfriend taught the dead last something before breaking it off.

Sasuke briefly wondered if Naruto even had a love life. For such a chatterbox, he never said anything about a boyfriend other than the chef.

He remembered how Sai interacted with Naruto and his fur bristled before he could stop it. Why did the thought of Naruto with anyone annoy him? The other man flirted outrageously to Naruto and the blonde went along with it. What did Naruto see in that guy?

When dinner was finished, Naruto washed the dishes and put the leftovers away. It was strange to see the blonde so domestic. In the soccer games, it was strange for Sasuke to even consider that Naruto would be able to clean up after himself.

Naruto took out the meals left by his friends and started inspecting them. When he pulled out Rock Lee's, he opened it up and cringed away from it before putting the lid back on.

"No wonder Sakura does all the cooking. God, where did he even get that recipe?"

 _'Probably some hippy-dippy health food store,'_ said Sasuke.

Naruto put the lids back on the food containers and put them back in the fridge.

 _'From Kiba and Hinata, Sakura and Lee, Tenten and Neji,'_ thought Naruto as he put them away. _'Gaara gave me ramen. Probably had Temari get them since he's busy with his father's company Suna. Ino gave me her special soba recipe. Shino can't make anything not out of a frozen dinner box. It's about the only thing she can make. Choji his barbeque, and Sai...'_

He paused as he held up the "meal" his friend gave him. It was a box of eatable underwear. His face first contorted into embarressment and then rage.

"That damn perverted artist!" he yelled as he threw the box out. "Why does he do perverted things like that?! How does Ino stand it?! Bad enough the Jiraiya-jii gave me one of his books, I don't need anymore reminders of my none-existing love life! I should have baachan beat him to a bloody pulp!"

Sasuke watched the scene with small interest. He didn't know who the "perverted artist" was. He remembered Ino from school. She was co-captain of the cheerleading squad in school and had been one of Sasuke's fangirls before his disappearance. He guessed she moved on. He had heard Naruto's speak of her having a husband when they were visiting.

After Naruto put the meals away, and threw out Lee's, they put on a movie. Even if he could talk, Sasuke wouldn't admit that this was one of his favorite parts of the day. When he and Naruto sat on the couch and watched shows quietly. Mostly quiet. Naruto had a bad habit of speaking aloud to characters or particpants in the shows he watched.

His shows were also diverse and mostly American. Criminalogy shows, supernatural shows and cooking shows. He particulary liked the cooking shows where the head chef yelled at the participants.

His movies were also diverse. They weren't placed in any order and some were very old. He had a collection of anime as well. Sasuke wasn't at all surprised he had the entire series of _Menma, The Gutsy Ninja_ or _Yu Yu Hakusho_. He saw manga copies in the bedroom.

The blonde had quite the collection of books, which was surprising to Sasuke. He thought Naruto would be too lazy to read, but his library proved him wrong, though most of the books were unread. He had the inclination to read, just not the time.

That night, they watched a movie about a paralyzed man heading to a distant planet in his brother's stead, and with the use of a synchronized body in imitation of the planet's inhabitants, lead a revolution against the human trying to destroy the native's home. The movie was long, but enjoyable.

When the movie ended, Naruto put the movie away and turned to the black canine that had been laying at his feet the entire movie. Kiba's words went through his head. He knew Kurogane was strange. Kyuubi and Kurama had never stayed awake during an entire movie. They just slept right through them.

Plus he was almost always awake before Naruto, and when he sleeps past his alarm, Kurogane would wake him up. Almost always by jumping on him. At first Naruto thought that it was because the canine wanted breakfast, but it was almost always a half hour until he had to go to work. Enough time to make a quick breakfast before running out the door.

And then there was the night he was attacked. He was sure he had locked the front door, but Kiba had said he found it open and with scratch marks on the wood. He knew that specially trained dogs could open locked doors to get to of situations, but he hadn't trained Kurogane to do any of that. Someone had trained that to the dog, but event he most highly trained dog wouldn't take action without being ordered from their master. So the only obvious answer was that he was trying to escape.

"Why didn't you?" asked Naruto looking at the dog. Sasuke looked up at him. "You opened the door with difficulty. You were outside, but you didn't escape. You came right to my side. Why?"

 _'You wouldn't believe me even if you could hear me,'_ said Sasuke.

Naruto sighed and gets up.

"Well, since we don't have to go to work for a week, we get to sleep in tomorrow," he said. "But I'm beat. Let's turn in early, huh?"

 _'You've read my mind,'_ said Sasuke.

XXXXXX

Over the next week, the two companions pushed themselves into their training. Not even Kin could bring them down no matter how much she insulted them. Both dog and handler were strangely in tune with each other, more so than they had before.

"You should have seen him, Kiba," said Naruto at Kiba's clinic. His friend was looking over Sasuke's cut while Kyuubi waited on the floor dozing. Sasuke noticed the older dog had done that a lot in the past couple weeks. "He breezed through the obstical course and broke Senbon's new record. Kin was not happy about that. How's his leg doing?"

"Very well," said Kiba. "I'll be able to remove the stitches in a week or two if he keeps healing so well."

"Did you hear that, boy," said Naruto scratching behind Sasuke's ears. "You're Superdog!"

 _'Please refrain from the stupid nicknames,'_ said Sasuke as Kiba rewrapped his leg.

"How's Cheza?" asked Naruto as they lifted Sasuke to the floor. The month before, Naruto had taken Kyuubi and Sasuke to the Inuzuka kennel to be paired with a couple of females. Sasuke had ignored the female he had been paired with which confused the handlers. They guessed it was because of disinterest, which they were not wrong about, and had left at the end of the day.

"Great," said Kiba. "Pregnant. Confirmed last night."

Naruto turned to Kyuubi excited.

"You hear that, boy! You're going to be a daddy!"

Kyuubi wagged his tail but didn't lift his head. Kiba frowned at the usually energetic dog's actions.

"How long has he been lethartic?" asked Kiba bending down to kneel next to the dog.

 _'Give the mutt a bone, he knows a ten dollar word,'_ said Sasuke as Naruto knelt next to him.

"A few days, maybe a week," said Naruto. "I thought it was because of his age."

"Maybe, or it could be something else," said Kiba running his hand through Kyuubi's fur. "How's he eating?"

"Little bit every day. I've tried everything to get him to eat, even my roasted chicken. He'd take a couple of nibbles and leave it."

Kiba pauses to think before a moment before standing.

"I want to take a look, get some blood test," he said.

"Okay," said Naruto.

Kiba called his wife in to assist and they began a thorough check-up of Kyuubi. After taking a few blood samples, Kiba gave the dog a treat and turned to his friend.

"I'll call when I find something," said Kiba. "Thought I pray it's nothing."

"Me too," said Naruto petting his old friend. "I'll see you later. Come on, Kurogane."

Sasuke followed Naruto out of the clinic as Kiba called after them.

"See you later, guys!" he called.

 **TBC**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

"You wanted to see me, sir?" asked Naruto as he walked into Kakashi's office. Kurogane was waiting outside since the dog refused to enter one of the kennels used to contain the dogs until their handlers came back for them. Naruto didn't have to worry about the dog causing a scene. He was very well behaved.

"Yes," said Kakashi. "How's your arm?"

"Better than ever," said Naruto swinging his arm around in a mock wind-up.

"And your partner?"

"More than ready to go."

"Good," said Kakshi and picked up a file. "We just got information on a low-level fighting ring. We don't know yet if it's connected to Gato, but..."

"No chances, got it," said Naruto taking the file.

"There is one thing before you begin the mission," said Kakashi. Naruto noticed the hesitation in Kakashi's voice and that worried him.

"What is it, Kakashi?" he asked.

"The brass wants to test you and Kurogane's abilities. Despite all the training you have had together..."

"We're not field tested," said Naruto with sad understanding.

"The Chief of Police and the District Attorney have decided to give you and Kurogane a trial run," said Kakashi. "They and I will judge you and Kurogane on your response time during unpredicatble situations."

"What do you mean, 'unpredicatable'?"

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but I can't disclose that."

Naruto nodded.

"Okay, so, when's the test?" he asked.

"Tomorrow at three."

Naruto looked at his captain and mentor in shock. One day didn't give him much time to prepare, but he had confidence in the teamwork between himself and Kurogane.

"Report to training ground three tomorrow at three," said Kakashi.

"Yes, sir," said Naruto before he turned to walked out of the office.

"And Naruto." Naruto turned to look back at Kakashi. "Good luck."

"Thank you, sir."

Naruto walked out of the office. Kurogane followed him not far behind.

Naruto could not have waited any longer for his week suspension to be over. He, Kyuubi and Kurogane walked every morning and evening and spent hours in the dog parks. Kyuubi loved to play outside and spent a while running and fetching the Frizbee that Naruto had brought until he collapsed from exhaustion.

Kurogane, on the other hand, stayed by Naruto's side and watched as the rest of the dogs and their owners played. He didn't even raise to the bait when Kyuubi tried to get him to play. After an hour, Kyuubi got tired and they'd head back to the house.

Now, Naruto's doctor and Kiba cleared both of them for duty. Naruto still felt a slight twitch in his arm, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. Not when the thought of Gato still out there comes to mind. He had to pay for all the animals he had hurt.

Especially Kurogane.

Naruto looked down at his canine partner. Kurogane had endured so much at the hands of the tamers in the dog fighting ring. It was abuse and torture.

He understood why the higher-ups were worried about putting Kurogane back in the ring. Usually, no animal rehabilitator would allow a dog that was in fights to go back. There was always a chance of the animal going feral.

Naruto didn't foresee that happening with Kurogane. For some reason, since the moment they met, Naruto knew he could trust him. It wasn't something he questioned. He just knew that he could.

Kneeling in front of the dog, Naruto smiled encouragingly to his partner.

"We can handle anything they throw at us, right, boy?" he said.

Kurogane huffed in agreement.

XXXXXX

The next day, Naruto gave Kuragone an extra good scrub in the bath and took him on a short jog to loosen his muscles. Kurogane didn't seem uneasy about the test, but most animals picked up on their owners' anxiety and Naruto knew the test inside and out. He had no problem with going through the course and had a feeling they were going to come out strong.

The only downside was the district attorney. Danzo was a hard hitter on criminals, but hehit harder on those who opposed him, which Naruto did during the last election for governor when he voted for Sarutobi instead.

Danzo had came to the precinct to promote his campaign and Naruto spoke out against him. Even as a trainee, Naruto never liked how Danzo worked and had no problems with voicing his opinions, which got him into trouble sometimes.

With Danzo, he had the right to voice them. Naruto had what his friends call the B.S. radar. He would know when someone was lying to him and nearly every word Danzo said was one. Naruto was glad when Danzo was outvoted and remained a district attorney.

Naruto walked into the training grounds and looked around. Everything was exactly how he remembered it when he tested with Kyuubi. He looked down at Kurogane standing next to him.

"You ready for this, boy?" he asked, excited.

Sasuke huffed an agreement. He was more than ready to get the test over with and get out onto the field. He had a bone to pick with Gato. Especially the handler Mizuki. That man took too much pleasure to of hurting the dogs under his care, especially Sasuke. Mizuki probably had the same suspicions about Sasuke that Naruto's friends did. Sasuke had been too smart for a normal dog and didn't obey on command. Mizuki wasn't one to take that lightly. Sasuke couldn't count how many times Mizuki's cattle prod zapped him. If teaming up with Naruto meant that he could get back at the man, than he'd take it.

They walked to the builidng. It was an old warehouse converted to simulate every possible outcome in a raid. There were cameras inside to the judges could watch on monitors outside and determine the canidates outcome.

At the judging table, Kakashi was already there, early for once, sitting next to Asuma Sarutobi, the Chief of Police and with him was Danzo. Naruto greeted the first two warmly.

"Hey, Asuma, how's Kurenai and Mirai?" he asked.

"They're doing fine," he said. "They can't wait to see you at the next barbeque."

"Just tell Choji to save me some ribs."

"Doubt it."

"If we can get on with it," said Danzo annoyed. "I have a trial this afternoon and would like to be on time."

"Picky, picky," said Naruto.

"Your weapon," said Asuma.

Naruto walked up to the judging table and pulled out his weapon. Right in front of the three judges, Naruto stripped his weapon to show it wasn't tampered with and assembled it. The whole process took about two minutes and easy for Naruto. His mother taught him how to handle a gun when he was ten and taught him to shoot at the age of twelve. The first thing she instilled into him was that a gun was a weapon and should be respected and feared at the same time. He never forgot his mother's lesson, no matter how much he was bullied at school. He couldn't remember how many times he had gotten detention for fighting or yelling at the bullies that seemed to get a kick out of making fun of him and his mother, yet the thought of taking his mother's gun never came to mind. He preferred to win his fights his own way.

Assembling his weapon, he accepted the loaded clip and holstered his weapon. With Sasuke's leash in hand, he turned to the starting line and waited for the sergeant to give him the signal.

"There are six bad guys, one hostage and five packets of drugs in the building," said Asuma. "There is no time limit. You're to start at the signal."

Naruto unclipped Sasuke's leash and unholstered his gun, leveling it to the ground at the ready until the sergeant gave the signal.

"Go!" said the sergeant, blowing the horn.

Naruto raised his gun and walked into the building. Sasuke was a foot in front of him. Entering the building, Naruto checked to see if the area was clear before moving on.

Sasuke wove through crates and boxes, sniffing out people and drugs. He remembered watching those procedural cop shows his mother like to watch and how they could canvass a building in less than a minute, but in real life, it took six minutes. It didn't help that it was just the two partners, but that didn't stop them.

Naruto had taken out five of the six bad guys and was currently looking for the sixth and the hostage. Sasuke had found all five packets of drugs and was leading Naruto toward the last bad guy. They found him in the last room, holding the hostage against him like a shield and pointed the gun at her.

"Don't take another step or I'll blow her head off!" he yelled.

Naruto took a cautious step forward and the man cocked the gun.

"I mean it!"

Sasuke growled. He knew this was only a simulated test, but he didn't like the tone he made toward Naruto.

"Ma'am, do you trust me?" asked Naruto, his eye not leaving her capture.

She nodded and a split second later, Naruto's gun when off. She cried out in pain as a red spot appeared on her shoulder. She dropped to the floor when the man lossened his hold and Naruto shot him three times in the chest. The man dropped the ground and Naruto cautiously walked toward him, his gun still in hand.

"Ma'am, are you okay?" he asked.

"You shot me!" she screeched, holding her shoulder.

"Yeah, sorry about that," said Naruto as he kicked the gun away. He knelt beside her and checked her shoulder. "You should be used to getting shot at though, right, Kurenai?"

"Doesn't mean I like it," said Kurenai getting up. "I'd like to go home to my daughter in one piece, thanks."

"Come on, it was just a paintball gun."

"They still hurt."

Sasuke was listening to the two argue as he looked to a door opened not far from them. He knew the test was over, but something didn't sit right with him. The smell of dog hung in the air, at least a half hour old, and it didn't have a retreating scent. If fact it was getting stronger. Before he could wonder why, Senbon ran through the open door and charge toward Naruto.

Like in the alley, Sasuke didn't think. He reacted. He jumped and intercepted Senbon before he reached Naruto and latched onto the dog's neck. Both dogs rolled around on the floor, both trying to get the upper hand in the fight. As they fought, Sasuke caught a scent coming off of Senbon that was definitely not canine. It distracted him for a moment, but that was enough for Senbon to latch onto his neck. Sasuke kicked him off as aloud whistle sounded and Senbon ran out of the room.

"What the fuck?!" yelled Naruto running toward Sasuke's side and checking his injuries. "Was that part part of the test?"

"Not that I know of," said Kurenai, kneeling next to Naruto. "How is he?"

"Seems shallow, but I want Kiba and Hinata to check on it." By the tone in Naruto's voice, anyone could tell that he was furious. "But right now, I'm going to give those judges a piece of my mind."

Getting up, he walked out of the warehouse. Sasuke wasn't far behind him. Walking outside, he walked to the judging table and stopped in front of it. Kakashi and Asuma looked almost as furious as Naruto and were glaring daggers at Danzo.

"What the fuck, Kakashi?!" yelled Naruto. "Where the hell did Cujo come from?!"

"That's what I'd like to know," said Kakashi.

"It wouldn't exactly be a test if he knew what the challenge was," said Danzo, "so I asked Sergeant Tsuchi to assist with her canine partner."

"You were supposed to inform us of any changes," said Asuma angrily. "Your decision put Naruto and his partner in danger."

Danzo glared at them both in annoyance before answering.

"The only danger is a distracted mind, which Naruto exihibited. How can we entrust him in the field if he can't keep his head in the game?"

"Naruto exhibited amazing focus," said Asuma. "This wasn't his first time taking the test and both him and his partner secured the building in record time."

"He shot the hostage."

"He saved the hostage," said Kakashi. "In a real raid, an officer will have to make a split second decision to save a life."

"I am not disputing that," said Danzo. "I am disputing his actions."

"This is a test to see if Naruto and Kurogane can handle situations under pressure," said Kakashi. "He will have no back up, so he will have to get used to split second decisions. I am confident in his test results."

"As am I," said Asuma.

"I am not." Everyone turned to Danzo with a glare, but the older man ignored them and continued. "I suggest we use Tsuchi for this operation. She and Senbon have done undercover work before. Surely they are more than qualified."

"They are, but Senbon does not have the air of a fight dog," said Asuma. "Kurogane does."

"Then, by all means, have her and Officer Uzumaki's dog go together."

"What?!" yelled Naruto. "No way in hell will I allow someone else to partner with Kurogane!"

 _'Agreed,'_ said Sasuke with a growl. He never liked Kin. Something about her put him off, and the smell coming off of Senbon. No way was that canine, or human.

"I agree," said Kakashi. "Kurogane will obey no one but Naruto. Naruto spent the last six months taking care of him and training him. If you try to set him up with another partner, I doubt you will get a possitive response."

 _'Damn right!'_

Kim laughs.

"Give me a break, its just a dog!" she said. "If you had trained your pet properly then any handler can use him."

"Kurogane is my partner, not my pet," said Naruto vehemently. "And the day you become Kurogane's partner is over my dead body!"

 _'Even after that,'_ said Sasuke.

"Let's hope it never comes to that," said Kakashi standing up. "The purpose of this test was to determine if you and Kurogane can work as a team, and you have proven you can. I say they are more than qualified to take on the case."

"I second that," said Asuma. He gave Naruto a proud smile. "I have never seen a better K-9 team."

"Thanks, Asuma-sensei, Kakashi-sensei," said Naruto happily.

"Do us proud, you two," said Kakashi.

Naruto nodded and walked out of the warehouse. As he headed toward his car his phone started to ring. He dug it out of his pocket and answered.

"Uzumaki."

"Naruto, it's Kiba. I got Kyuubi's test results back."

"That's great, Kiba. So what is it? Is he all right?"

"Naruto..." Kiba's voice sounded strained, as if he was having trouble saying the words. Naruto immediately picked up on Kiba's distress.

"Kiba, what's wrong?"

"Naruto, I'm sorry. When I looked at his brain scans...I found a spot."

"A spot?"

"A tumor, Naruto. Kyuubi's dying."

 **TBC**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"What did I do wrong, Kiba?" asked Naruto to his friend. "I bought the right dog foods, on time with his monthly check-ups, excercised. What did I do wro ng?"

Kiba looked at his friend sadly. No matter how many times he gave people this news, it was always hard, but this time it was the hardest because Naruto was one of his best friends and his family helped train Kyuubi. Naruto sat on a stool in Kiba's office with Kyuubi laying on the floor next to him. Kiba had asked him to come in for a follow-up test and to explain what was going on.

It was the one part of his job that he hated doing, especially to his best friend. He became a vet to help animals, and it killed him inside each time he let one down, but especially so for his friends.

"It's not something you did, Naruto," said Kiba. "It's one of those things in life you can't control."

Naruto was near hyperventilating.

"Can't you..can't you take it out?" he asked.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but I can't." He took out a CAT scan and held it up to the light for Naruto to see. "See, that right there?"

Naruto nodded, looking at the dark spot on the sheet.

"The tumor's in a spot where it's impossible to get to," said Kiba. "Even if I could get it out, it would kill him."

Naruto looked down at his partner sadly. Even if he tried to save him, Kyuubi would die anyway. It was too much to think about. Naurto and Kyuubi had been partners since Kyuubi had been born. It was hard to think of Kyuubi not being around.

"What do I do?" he asked.

"Make him comfortable," said Kiba. "Give him some painkillers for his headaches, which is the cause of his lethargy. Over time, they'll make him irritable. I'll write a prescription out for you."

"How long will he have?"

"It's hard to say. Six months to a year is my opinion, but I can't be sure. It's like a time bomb, without the timer."

Naruto looked even more sad. He watched as Kiba wrote on a prescription slip and handed it to him.

"Give this to Hinata. She'll give you the right prescription. Give him on pill every twelve hours. It'll perk him up."

"Thanks, Kiba," said Naruto.

"We're still on for our hang out this weekend."

Naruto looked surprised.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" he asked. "What if it's too much for him?"

"He'll be fine," said Kiba. "The fresh air and exercise will be good for him. He needs it."

"I guess. I'm just so scared." For the first time in years, tears fell from Naruto's eyes. The last time he cried was over his parents grave ten years before when his mother died. "He's the last thing connecting me to my mom. If I lost him..."

"Naruto, your mom was an amzing woman," said Kiba placing a comforting hand on his friends arm. "You know Kyuubi would die before you someday. It's just sooner than you think."

"I know. It's just so hard."

"I know."

They stayed together for a couple minutes in comforting silence before Naruto stood and picked up Kyuubi's leash.

"I better head off," he said. "I got to take Kurogane and Kyuubi to the park to let off some steam."

"Good idea. I'll see you later, Naruto."

"See you, Kiba. Come on, Kyu."

Both human and partner stood and left the office room.

XXXXXX

Sasuke sighed as he laid on the carpet. Since the call the day before, Naruto had been walking around with an air of grief. He paid close attention to Kyuubi and even allowed the older dog to sleep in the bedroom, not that Sasuke minded. He was human. He understood the need for comfort, but he wondered why Naruto was suddenly so sad. He was so happy the day before after passing the farce of a trial until that phone call. Sasuke knew it was from Kiba, so it had something to do with Kyuubi. Sasuke just didn't know what.

Sasuke thought back to the dog the day before. The smell that came off of Senbon wasn't just of shampoo or outdoors, but also of drugs. It wasn't uncommon for dogs to smell faintly of drugs, but not as heavily as Senbon did. It was surprising since he hadn't heard of any raids that day, so there was no reason why Senbon would smell so much of drugs.

Sasuke was surprised when he found himself excited when he heard about their upcoming mission. He had planned to only stay with Naruto until he was all healed, but that didn't go as planned. Remembering the attack and Naruto bleeding on the ground. Sasuke hated to admit it, but he had nightmares of that night. Afterwards, he was compelled to go into Naruto's room and watch over him as he slept.

Why did it feel like he couldn't breathe at the thought of losing Naruto? He felt so protective of him, and he liked that Naruto paid attention to him and went out of his way to make sure that Sasuke was comfortable. Being around Naruto made Sasuke relaxed.

Could it be that Sasuke actually cared about Naruto? Sasuke couldn't see how that was possible. After all, Naruto was human and Sasuke was canine.

But he wasn't all canine, Sasuke thought with a frown. His mind was still human. He still though like one, not that he knew what dogs thought like, but it obviously wasn't in mathematical equations. Maybe it was the human part of him that appealed to Naruto.

Before Sasuke could think any further on the subject, he heard the sound of a car pull up. His ear twitched toward the sound and he looked out the window to see Naruto's orange car pull up. He didn't know how Naruto could still drive the death trap. It stalled twice that week. Naruto should scrap it already instead of complaining about mechanics and overpriced parts. Sasuke knew that the department would give Naruto a car to use if he needed on.

Naruto sighed as he walked in and took his coat and shoes off. He placed his keys in the placeholder on the table infront of the door before smiling at Sasuke waiting for him patiently.

From the moment Naruto walked in, Sasuke could tell the man was upset about something, but he turned to Sasuke with a smile.

"Hey, boy," said Naruto. "Just let me check on supper and we'll head to the park, okay?"

 _'Fine, by me,'_ thought Sasuke and huffed in agreement.

Naruto went to the crock pot where he was slow simmering a beef stew and stirred it with a spoon. Sasuke watched patiently as Kyuubi attempted to play with him. When Naruto was sure that dinner hadn't burnt, he grabbed both leashes and put his shoes back on.

"Come on, boys," he said. The dogs went to his side and Naruto clipped the leashes on and they walked to the dog park.

Sasuke wondered what could have made the udually cheerful blonde depressed. It had to have something to do with Kyuubi since Naruto took the dog the see Kiba. He knew how much Naruto cared about Kyuubi. He treated the dog like a little brother and bought the best dog brands on a cop's salary.

Sasuke didn't know why, but he didn't like seeing Naruto upset. He wanted to find what was wrong and fix it, but he couldn't exactly ask. He hadn't spoken to a person in ten years.

Naruto lead the dogs to their usual bench and took out Kyuubi's ball. Kyuubi had a blast chasing after the ball and even Naruto had a soft smile on his face.

"Naruto."

Naruto looked up in surprise to see Sakura walk over to him. She sat on the bench next to him and wrapped him in a hug.

"I just heard," she said. "I'm so sorry."

"How," he asked in shock. Sakura laughed.

"Friendship Phone Tree, of course," said Sakura. "Kiba told Hinata, who told Ino who told Sai who told Shikamaru..."

"Who told Choji who told Tenten who told Neji who told Lee and you," said Naruto with a laugh.

He should have known. He had named it the 'Friendship Phone Tree'. Since the group got together, all eleven always had each other's backs be it a fight or personal emergencies. When one friend knew another was in trouble, they'd phone one of the friends and it would start a chain event through the line. It near guaranteed a friend or two, or even the whole group, would be there to help out.

Kyuubi ran back with the ball in his mouth and handed it to Sakura. She tossed it and Kyuubi ran after it.

"How long did Kiba say he had?" asked Sakura.

"Hard to say," said Naruto. "A couple months or couple years. He said it was like a bomb, only you can't disfuse it. Just got to wait for it to go boom."

Sakura gaped in shock.

"So, there's no hope?"

Naruto shook his head and took a shuddering breathe to hold back the tears that threatened to spill. He had forced himself not to cry all night and most of the day, and now it seemed like he couldn't hold it in. Sakura wraps an arm around him and holds him close as he silently cries in her shoulder.

Sasuke watches the entire exchange. Naruto had mentioned Kiba, who was a vet, so whatever was wrong had to do with Kyuubi, and whatever it was, was bad. Without realizing it, he moved closer to Naruto and laid his head on Naruto's leg and Naruto fisted Sasuke's fur.

Sakura watched the dog in a mix of surprise and curiosity. She had heard that the dog didn't act like a normal one from her friends, but she didn't think it was true, but now she didn't hadn't been around dogs as mch as Naruto or Kiba, but even she knew that dogs weren't as intuitive as Kurogane seemed to be. The dog didn't seem to run and play as the other dogs did. Everytime Naruto threw the ball for Kyuubi, Kurogane stayed next to Naruto's side. Normal dogs, even abused ones, didn't act like that.

The two friends spoke a little more before Sakura had to return home and Naruto went home as well. Walking inside, he served himself and Kurogane, and then made a dish for Kyuubi of premium dog food.

"Okay, boy," he said as he added the crushed painkillers. "Hopefully, this will make you feel better."

He set the bowl on the floor and Kyuubi started eating.

"That steriod shot you go did a lot of good," said Naruto. "You had more energy today than you did in a week."

He turned to Kurogane, who was watching him with an almost calculating look.

"We'll have to watch out for Kyuubi for a while," he said. "It's our turn to take care of him."

Naruto turned and went to serve their dinner and Sasuke knew then, that Kyuubi's condition was grave, and also Naruto's emotional stability.

 **TBC**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Sasuke walked beside Naruto as they walked toward the warehouse where Kakashi's intel said that was the next location of the dog fighting ring. Naruto had a leash attatched to Sasuke's collar and held it as if he was keeping Sasuke in control, but Naruto knew that Sasuke never needed controlled. He worked with Naruto willingly, for whatever reason he couldn't figure out.

They walked toward the warehouse door and Naruto knocked. The door opened slightly and an eye peeked out.

"Gato sent us," he said.

The man nodded and opened the door fully. They walked in and Sasuke got a good smell of the dogs in the warehouse, some he had beaten, and the human owners. Naruto lead Sasuke to the ring and watched as they used smaller dogs to bait the fight dogs.

"Horrible," said Naruto under his breath.

Sasuke had to agree. The smaller dogs were either breed or snatched off the street to rile the bigger dogs into fighting, and they rarely survived the night. They used to try that trick on Sasuke, but he never laid even a tooth on them, which annoyed the audience, for it got them riled up as well.

Sasuke softly growled as the audience cheered when pit bull grabbed the small dog and started shaking it like a rag doll. Naruto put a comforting hand on his head.

"Easy, boy, easy," he said softly. "We'll get them."

 _'Damn right we will,'_ thought Sasuke.

"Haven't seen you here before." Naruto turned to see a man walk toward him. "Are you new?"

"Yes," said Naruto. He held out his hand to him. "Menma."

"Ibuki," said the man shaking Naruto's hand. "Is that your dog."

"Yeah, this is Karasu."

Ibuki looks down at Sasuke with a studious eye.

"He looks docile," he said.

Naruto smirked.

"Just wait until he gets into the ring," said Naruto.

Ibuki didn't look impressed.

"He looks familiar," he said thoughtfully.

"Doubt it," said Naruto. "I got him from a farm outside of town. Scrawny thing, but he grew up strong. I've never trained a better fighter."

"So this isn't your first time?"

"With this crowd, yes, but not with fight dogs. I used to go to the ones on the other side of town, but I heard that the ones here were better."

"From who?"

"Mizuki," said Naruto thinking of the first criminal tied to fighting rings that he could.

Ibuki seemed to be convinced and pointed toward the side of the warehouse.

"Kennel's over there," he said. "you're to keep him there until it's his turn." He pointed toward a man wearing glasses and holding a ledger. "Bookie. Tell him the amount you're betting."

Naruto nods.

"Thanks," he said.

Keeping a firm, but gentle hold to Sasuke's leash, he lead Sasuke to the cages filled with dogs. Each one were barking and snarling at them as they walked to an empty one. An employee handed him a lock and key and Naruto used it to lock Sasuke's cage so no one would hurt the canine before his turn. He locked Sasuke's cage and pocketed the key.

Kakashi put a lot of thought into Naruto's undercover identity. If someone knew who he was, there was no doubt that they would gang-up on him and linch him. They only person who knew Naruto's false name and location was Kakashi, and Naruto knew his boss and father's old trainee would never rat him out. Back up was a call away if Naruto needed it.

Naruto walked around, acting the part of a new guy looking around, and went to the ring. Several men had their phones out to record the fights and were cheering their favorites. Naruto also had his phone out the record, but he didn't record the fights. Instead, he recorded the handlers, the bookie and the other employees. So far, he didn't see the ring leader, which intel suspected was Gato. Naruto hoped it was accurate. He was more than ready to get the slimeball behind bars where he belonged.

Handlers wrestled the dogs back into their kennels and a man walked out onto a platform overlooking the improvised ring. It was Gato. Intel was right.

"Thank you all for coming in today," he said. "I hope you all placed your bets for the first round..."

As Gato made his announcements, Naruto put a hand in his pocket and pressed the red button on his car remote lock.

A minute later, the door crashed open, and men in black protective gear with the word POLICE written acrossed the helmet stormed in.

"Police! Nobody move!" yelled Kakashi as he lead the teams inside.

Naruto ran with the crowd, but instead of running to the EXIT, he ran toward the kennels and let Sasuke out.

"Let's get to work, boy," said Naruto as he knelt down and pulled out his reserve gun from his ankle.

Sasuke barked and agreement. The sooner they were out of there, the better.

The partners hurried toward the end of the warehouse where all the employees where running toward to more than likely save as much of their product as they could before high tailing it out. Sasuke lead Naruto toward where he was getting the faint odor of drugs.

As they neared, Sasuke heard voices. He knew Naruto couldn't hear them with his softer ears. A man and a woman. He turned toward the sounds and stopped when he saw two people arguing. One was Gato and the other a very familiar woman. Standing next to the woman was a very familiar dog.

"I warned you that a cop was going to be undercover on one of your fights," said the woman. "You should have relocated."

"This warehouse was planned weeks in advance," said Gato. "Relocating meant loss of money and clients. And product!"

"Mr. Orochimaru is not happy," said the woman. "And when he's not happy, he sends me."

Sasuke felt Naruto move next to him, and stopped when he saw who the woman was.

"Kin?"

The woman turned toward them.

"Fuck!" she yelled. She unhooked the dog from the leash. "Attack!"

Instantly, Senbon went from passive, to a killing machine. He charged toward Naruto and Sasuke with murderous intent. He felt Naruto raise his gun but he never let the blonde have the chance to use it. He jumped between Naruto and the dog, again, and fought fang and claw against the other canine. He nearly choked against the strong smell of drugs off him.

Naruto watched as Senbon charged toward him and Kurogane got between them. The two rolled on the floor, trying to get the upper hand, and as much as Naruto wanted to help his partner he had to stop Gato and Kin. Leaving the two canine to duke it out, he ran toward where the two had ran off.

Turning corners from two crates, he found them running to an exit. Naruto lifted his gun and fired a warning shot before they could reach it. It hit the door just as Kin was reaching for it and she turned her gun onto him, but didn't fire.

"Why, Kin," he asked, keeping his gun on her. Gato ran away, but Naruto was focused on the bigger threat. "Why betray the department?"

"It would be hard to betray something I don't believe in," said Kin slowly sliding away but Naruto followed her step for step. "Everything I do is for Mr. Orochimaru."

"The crime lord?"

Orochimaru was the largest crime lord in Konoha, but the police couldn't never pin anything on him. None of the members of his gang would rattle on him so there was no way that they could arrest him. He controlled all smuggling, drug deals and fight clubs in the city.

It also didn't help that he funneled his money through is legitiment businesses, so there was no way they could connect the money to him. Not even tax evasion could be connected to him.

Every good cop in the city wanted to take him down.

"When did you start working for Orochimaru?" asked Naruto.

"I have always worked for him," said Kin. "Ever since he took me in off the street when three foster homes kicked me out. He gave me a home and a purpose. I could have gone into smuggling or drugs like my brothers, Dosu and Zaku, but Orochimaru saw something better in me. By the time I was sixteen, I trained all of Mr. Orochimaru's prized fight dogs."

"You never trained Senbon to search for drugs, did you?" asked Naruto, trying to keep talking until backup arrived.

"Why would I?" said Kin with a laugh. "It would have defeated Mr. Orochimaru's purpose. Senbon is the best attack dog I have ever trained. He will tear through your mutt like butter."

Naruto felt someone walk up beside him and chanced a glance down to see Kurogane standing next to him. There were a few bloody scratches and his mouth was bloody, but Naruto was relieved to find him alive.

"Looks like mine's better," said Naruto smirking.

Kin's face turned red with anger at the loss of her favorite pet.

"No!" she yelled and leveled her gun toward him.

Five things happened at once. Kurogane leaped between Naruto and King's gun, Kin's gun went off and Naruto's went off as well. Naruto heard a yelp from both Kin and Kurogane, and Kurogane landed on the floor.

When he heard Kurogane's yelp, Naruto's heart shot into his throat. More thana nything, he wanted to check on his partner, but he had to secure Kin, so he ran toward the down woman, kicked the gun out of reach and took out his cuffs.

"You shot my dog, you pitch," he said as he cuffed her to a shelf.

"Soft, weak, pathetic..."

Naruto, who rarely hit a girl, socked Kin in the temple and she went out like a light. Getting up, he ran to Kurogane, who was struggling to get up.

Sasuke gasped as a searing pain shot through him. After getting rid of Senbon, he ran toward Naruto's side and when he saw Kin level her gun toward Naruto, he didn't think. He jumped to grab her gun arm when the gun went off and he felt a searing pain in his chest. He dropped as soon as he felt it and stuggled to breath.

The bullet entered his chest and nicked a rib cage, which splittered and the splinters shot into his lungs while the bullet grazed his heart before lodging into the back of his rib cage. His struggle to breath was caused by his blood filling up his lung. He was drowning in his own blood.

He heard a shuffled before Naruto ran to his side and knelt next to him.

"Kurogane! Kurogane, can you stand?" asked Naruto.

Sasuke struggled to stand, but fell back down on the ground. He felt Naruto's arm around him and held him to the blonde's chest.

"Help!" Naruto yelled. "Somebody help!"

 _'Naruto,'_ said Sasuke, fighting to keep his eyes open. _'I'm sorry.'_

 **TBC**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Sasuke slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he registered was the fell of cold, hard cement under him. There was not a layer of clothing separating him from the ground. Above him was a clear blue sky and he could hear birds twittering in the distance. A strangley familiar smell hit his nose. The last thing he remembered was losing conciousness in Naruto's arms. Was he dead and this was heaven?

"You ain't dead, yet, and this ain't heaven," said an irritatingly familiar voice. Sasuke sat up to glare at the woman preening roses.

"Is there a reason why I'm naked?"

"Not like you needed clothes as a dog," said Tsunade. "I'm surprised though. Some didn't think that you'd change, and earlier than some thought. We had a bet going."

"Did you win?" asked Sasuke pulling his legs up to hide a bit of his modesty. You would think that a woman with powers over life or death, she'd give him some clothes to wear.

"If if makes you feel better, no, I did not."

"It does actually," said Sasuke. "Can I have some clothes."

"On the fountain."

Sasuke turned to see the same fountain from his first dream years ago. A set of clothes were placed on the bench around it. Getting up, he walked toward the fountain, making sure Tsunade had her back to him the whole time. Quickly, he grabbed the sweatpants and sweater and pulled them on.

"So now what?" he asked. "Am I going to hell?"

"Do you want to go to hell, Uchiha?" asked Tsunade snipping a bud. She placed it in the basket.

"Not particulary."

"I told you ten years ago that this was your second chance. If you hadn't learned what you were supposed to, you wouldn't be here."

"Why a dog?" asked Sasuke. "What does a dog have to do with learning my lesson?"

"A dog fits all the qualities you were to learn; honest, loyal, unselfish and compassionate. First the first nine years, you haven't shown any change at all, but in the last few months, you proved you had changed."

"So, my dying meant I learned my lesson?"

"No, you dying was an unforeseen event. No one thought you would actually jump in front of the gun and get shot."

"She was pointing the gun at Naruto!" said Sasuke angrily. "What was I supposed to do?"

"Which begs the question; Why did you jump in front of the gun?"

"I wasn't thinking at the time. I reacted."

"No. Why did you?"

"She had a gun. She was a dirty cop."

"No. Why did you?"

Now Sasuke was getting irritated. Why was Tsunade questioning why he jumped in front of the gun. He replayed the scene in his mind. The gun was leveled at Naruto and the look on Kin's face told him that she seriously intended to kill him. The thought of Naruto hurt or dead was like a fist around his heart. He had trouble breathing and made him nauseous. Realization hit him like a brick wall.

"I love Naruto."

Tsunade smiled softly and nods.

"There, now you've figured out the end of the lesson," she said.

"What are you talking about?" asked Sasuke.

Tsunade placed the shears in the basket, stood and walked toward Sasuke.

"The lesson only ends when you've learned the last lesson. Self-sacrifice. You died to protect to man you love."

"You still haven't answered my question. Now what?"

"Now, you put what you've learned to use."

And she pushed him into the fountain. Sasuke only had time to think, _'Not again'_ , before water surrounded him.

XXXXXX

..."So when animal control came to the scene, there was a boa constrictor wrapped around her arm," said Sora as he and Arashi push the gurney toward the ambulance. "She nearly lost her arm."

"How did a boa constrictor get in her house?" asked Arashi.

"It was her neighbors. It got loose and somehow got into her apartment."

"That has to be the worst neighbor."

Both men turned toward the alley when they heard a loud bang. It was the sound of something heavy hitting a dumpster.

"What was that?" asked Sora.

"Probably another O.D. dropoff," said Arashi. "We better go check it out."

Locking the ambulance, both men warily walked toward the alley. At night, the job was more dangerous with addicts trying to get into the ambulance for a quick raid. Sometimes they would use a distraction so their partner would raid the ambulance. As a precaution, they lock the ambulance to prevent theft.

The two EMTs walked around the alley and found a figure slumped against the hospital building. They couldn't see his face because of his dark hair.

"Sir," said Sora taking a small step towards him. "Sir, are you okay?"

The man groaned and his head rolled toward them. He mumbled a word so softly that they could barely make out what he had said.

"Naruto..."

XXXXXX

Itachi smiled as he watched his wife settle their six month old son. Yahiko was a copy of Konan, except for Itachi's dark brown eyes. Konan sang softly as she swayed .

Itachi was amazed that he had managed to have a child. Because he had been so sickly as a child, he didn't know if he had been able to father children, and with Konan's illness, it would have been near impossible. Luckily, his wife was an Uchiha at heart and already had a plan in place before they even met.

When their son was born, Konan had suggested naming him after Sasuke, but Itachi felt uneasy about naming his son after his brother. It wasn't that he didn't want to, but it was because he felt that Sasuke was still alive. So they compromised and named him after Konan's childhood friend and big brother figure, Yahiko.

At the moment, Konan was softly singing to encourage their son to sleep.

"When the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long/And you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong/Just remember in the winter , far beneath the bitter snow/Lies the seed, that with the sun's love in the spring becomes the rose."

With one last yawn, Yahiko fell asleep in his mother's arms and Konan set him back in the crib. She tucked him in before turning to smile at her husband.

"Watching again?" she asked.

"You're just so good with him," said Itachi. "Every time I try to get him to bed, he just cries and cries until you take him."

Konan laughs softly to not wake the sleeping baby. Itachi smiled down at his wife. Marrying Konan was something Fugaku was dead set against. With her past background, her illness and struggling art career, she was not Uchiha wife material, but Itachi knew she was the one after a couple meetings, so he proposed six months after meeting her and they eloped. He expected Fugaku to retaliated, and he did. He tried to force them to divorce, make Konan sign a prenup and limited Itachi's access to his inheritance and refused Konan access to the Uchiha accounts.

Luckily for Itachi, he set up his own account and they lived comfortably together for five years until they decided to expand their family. Mikoto had been more than supportive of their decisions and helped them find the best clinics and doctors in the country. Both were more than happy with their lives and didn't want to change a thing.

"That a Uchiha for you," she said as the phone rang. "You better get that. I just got your son to sleep."

Laughing softly, Itachi went to answer the phone.

"This is Itachi Uchiha," he said.

"Mr. Uchiha, this is Detective Yamato of the Konoha Police Department," said a male voice on the other end. "Sorry to disturb you at this late hour."

Itachi felt his blood run cold.

"Is my mother..."

"Your mother is not the reason for the call, Mr. Uchiha," said Yamato. "I'm calling in regards to another family member of yours. Your brother, Sasuke."

the phone fell from Itachi's hand and fell to the floor. Konan walked up to her husband and put a hand on his arm.

"Itachi, are you okay?"

Itachi didn't answer, still in shock over the news. Konan picked up the phone and spoke into it.

"Hello? … Yes. … Yes. … Are you sure? … Yes, thank you."

She hangs up and hugged Itachi.

"He's alive, Itachi," she said. "He's alive."

After calling the babysitter and promising extra for the late hour, they left for the hospital. By the time they arrived, Itachi had gotten over the shock and was anxious to see his little brother again. When they arrived both went to the registration desk.

"We're here for Sasuke Uchiha," she said.

"Relation," asked the nurse in a bored tone.

"My husband is his older brother and I'm his sister in law," said Konan in slight annoyance. Itachi smiled at his wife. She hated rude people.

"Room 712. Ask for Doctor Shizune."

"Thank you."

They walked down the hall toward the ICU and waiting anxiously for the doctor to arrive. They didn't have long to wait until a woman with pixie hair walked up to them.

"Mr. Uchiha?" she asked. Itachi nodded. "I'm Doctor Shizune. I'm your brother's doctor."

"How is he?" asked Itachi. "What happened to him?"

'That I cannot say," said Shizune. "He was found with a gunshot wound, but we managed to stop the bleeding. I would like to keep him here for a day or two to prevent infection."

Itachi nodded. Although not a doctor himself, he spent enough time in them to understand some of the colloquialism, so he knew that what she was suggesting was the best form of care.

"He has multiple scars, particulary one on his right thigh," continued Shizune. "A scar that deep would leave a pronouced limp, and from examination, it is at least six months old and had been cared for by a medical practicioner."

"But there have been no reports from hospitals or police station for years," said Konan. "How could he have gotten it stitched without the police finding out?"

"There are a lot of back alley doctors, ones who have lost their license and provide medical care for the less than desirable patients for the right price," said Shizune.

"Like gangs or the yakuza," said Itachi. "But those types of doctors are pricey. Where would he get the money?"

"I'm afraid I can't answer that, Mr. Uchiha," said Shizune. "I can say that he was well nourished. Wherever he had been staying, he was taken cared of."

"Can I see him?"

"He's heavily sedated at the moment. I don't expect him to awaken until mid-morning or so. You can see him then." An announcement blared through the P.A. system for Shizune and she sighed. "Excuse me."

She turned to leave, stopped, and turned back to them.

"One more thing," she said. "The EMTs that found heard him mumbling a name, 'Naruto'. Do you know what that means?"

Itachi thought for a moment. The name did sound familiar, and it took him a minute to remember where he had heard it.

"Yeah, it was the name of the team captain of the rival soccer team when my brother was in school," he said. "I haven't heard that name in thirteen years. Why would he be mumbling his name?"

"It's been known for disoriented patients to say names or anything that came to mind," said Shizune. "During his shock, he might have remembered his old game rival."

"Thank you doctor," said Konan. Shizune nodded and left to attend another patient.

"Somebody shot him," said Itachi. "Why would somebody shoot him?"

"He'll tell us when he wakes up," said Konan. She looked up to see her usually expressive husband have a set face. "Itachi, what are you going to do?"

"Protect my brother," said Itachi. "No doubt news of his return would have hit the news right now. I don't want reporters sneaking into his room for private interviews."

Taking out his cell phone he dialed a number and waited for it to connect.

"Neji, I have a job for you."

 **TBC**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Sasuke groggily opened his eyes. For a moment, he thought he was still in Tsunade's garden with the blasted fountain. He could still smell flowers. Staring up at the white ceiling, he realized the smell was coming from the flowers positioned around the room. The steady beeping of the heart monitor was quickly getting on his nerves. He was in a hospital.

The last thing he remembered before winding up in Tsunade's garden, was Naruto kneeling down next to him, begging him to stay alive. He had no doubt Naruto was now mourning over his dead dog body, if there was one. He remembered when he first turned into a dog and his family reported him missing. He could just imagine Naruto's reaction if he body faded in his arms.

He tried to take a deep breath, and winced at the pain in his chest. He reached up and grabbed his chest with a groan. He hadn't felt this much pain since Naruto hit him with the car.

He stopped and held up his hand. He had a hand! After ten years of paws and tails, he finally had his hand back! He was human again.

"You're awake."

Sasuke turned his head and saw Neji sitting on a chair in the corner of the room. He had a book in his lap, but Sasuke knew Neji could read a book, watch everyone in the room, and calculate the speed of a car at the same time. Not as smart as Shikamaru, but he gave a lot of people a run for their money.

Neji pushed a button on a table next to him and turned to Sasuke.

"Where am I?" asked Sasuke.

"A private wing in the hospital," said Neji turning a page. "Konoha Medical."

"How long?"

"Three days."

Three days. Three days of Naruto mourning him. Briefly, Sasuke wondered what Naruto was doing right now. Probably burying him in the precinct K-9 cemetery. The police department had a cemetery for retired dogs or dogs that died in the line of duty. Of course it wasn't uncommon for them to have their dogs cremated as well.

He hoped Naruto cremated him instead of burial.

"Why are you here?" he finally asked after a minute.

"I'm watching you," said Neji. "Itachi was afraid that those vultures would try to interrogate you before you were ready."

"You my bodyguard now?"

"For a about six hours a night."

"So you work for your uncle now?" asked Sasuke. Neji uncle, Hiashi, Hinata's father, owned a security firm where they provided bodyguards for anyone who needed it.

"No, Vice," said Neji. "Itachi called in a favor and I owed him."

The door opened and a woman walked in wearing a white lab coat. She had brown hair cropped to the nape of her neck and brown eyes. She carried a clipboard and looked up from it as she walked in.

"You're awake," she said. "Good. You have us a scare there. Almost didn't make it." She turned to Neji. "You may go now. You're replacement is here.

Neji closes his book and stood. He walked over to Sasuke's bed and grasped the other man's hand.

"It's good to have you back, cousin," he said sincerely. Sasuke weakly gripped it back. The Hyuga's and Uchiha's could trace their family to the same bloodline, so they had always been close. There had even been talk of uniting the family between him and Hinata, but his disappearance put him out of secession. Since Hinata had married Kiba Inuzuka, Itachi had somehow gotten out of it as well.

"Same."

Neji walked out as the doctor walked toward Sasuke's bed and checked the monitors.

"I'm Shizune, your doctor," she said. "Do you feel any pain, dizziness?"

"No," said Sasuke. "Did you operate on me?"

"No, that would be the head of the department," said Shizune. "But she's too busy running said department to look in on a single patient, so she assigned you to me."

"How did I get here?"

"You got shot, that's how you got here."

"I mean, how did I get here?"

Shizune glanced at him, who gave her a questioning look.

"You don't remember, do you?" she asked and he shook his head. "You were found by two EMTs by the side of the building. It's what saved your life. The bullet chipped your rib and grazed your heart. You were drowning in your own blood. Died twice on the table. If you hadn't been outside our door, you'd be dead for real."

"Thank you," said Sasuke.

"How did you get shot anyway?"

"I got in front of the wrong end of a gun, obviously," said Sasuke.

"By who, Uchiha-san?" Sasuke kept silent. Shizune gave him a look, but Sasuke didn't say a word. "The police will be asking the same question, Uchiha-san, and they expect an answer."

"That doesn't mean I'll give them one."

Shizune looked at him like a cop would a suspect, but didn't say anything more. She turned back to his monitors and started writing on the clipboard.

"How about the scar on your leg?" she asked.

"Got hit by a car. Does my brother know I'm awake?"

"I informed him as soon as Hyuga-san did," she said. "I expect he'll be here in a half hour, which will be enough time to comprise a story, I expect."

"When can I get out of here?" asked Sasuke.

"Tomorrow, but I still want you to take it easy. You did get shot in the chest."

After spending ten years as a dog, and a month in a kennel, Sasuke learned to not go against orders when it comes to his life. He just nods and settled down in his bed to rest until his brother came.

The half hour seemed to be mere seconds when he suddenly woke from his nap and found his brother sitting next to his bed,

"How long this time?" he asked.

"Hour from my reckoning," said Itachi. "Doctor said to let you continue to rest. Your body seems to need it."

"Next time I see her, I'll thank her for the accomodation, but I suggest better sleeping arrangements. This mattress feels like a board."

Itachi laughed.

"I'll let her know."

Sasuke studied his brother and could immediately see the relief on his face. Sasuke could only guess what Itachi had gone through since Sasuke disappearance. For the first few years after his transformation, Sasuke didn't think much about his family. He thought that they were glad that he was gone, but by the look on Itachi's face, he saw that it was the opposite.

"There's Mom?" he asked.

"On her way," said Itachi. "She was on a cruise when you were found. A helicoptor picked her up and is taking her to the nearest airport."

"A cruise?"

Itachi nodded.

"For a few years, she refused to leave the city in case you were found. It was Kanon who finally convinced her that she needed time to relax or else she would have collapsed."

"Kanon?" asked Sasuke.

Itachi flinched a bit and looked sheepish.

"Yes," he said hesitantly. "My wife. I got married five years ago, and my son Yahiko was born last year."

"Congratulations," said Sasuke sincerely. "I can't wait to meet them."

"Thanks. We thought it would be a good idea for them to be here when you woke. Kanon is anxious to meet you too."

"You've moved on," said Sasuke. "You and Mom."

"But we never stopped looking for you," said Itachi earnestly. "We looked everywhere. Missing posters, rewards. What happened to you, Sasuke?"

Sasuke pauses for a second. He wanted to tell Itachi the truth, but knew how impossible it sounded. Even he couldn't believe it, and he was had lived it.

"Itachi, just believe me when I say, I learned a lesson," said Sasuke. "I'm not perfect, but I want to be a better person."

Itachi smiled, stood and hugged Sasuke. Sasuke gratefully returned to hug.

"Welcome back, little brother."

XXXXXX

In the end, it had taken another two days for Sasuke to leave the hospital. When he had attempted to stand to reach the bathroom, his legs gave out from under him and his head nearly connected to the tray. The physical therapists couldn't determine why his legs were so weak since they weren't atrophied. Sasuke guess it was because he had spent the last ten years as a dog. He spent the day after Itachi's first visit reminding his legs on how to walk upright.

Neji visited a couple times after that when his work allowed it. He spoke what had happened in the last ten years, his marriage to TenTen and their son Hitoshi. His uncle was surprisingly all right with Neji and Hinata diverting from the family business. Sasuke guessed it was because Hinata's little sister Hanabi had joined the security firm and was now one of the toughest women there.

"Mother is planning a party," said Itachi as Neji wheeled Sasuke out of the hospital. "She's hoping you have a list of guests she can invite."

"I don't know," said Sasuke. "I'm a bit out of touch with my friends."

"Juugo and Suigetsu helped out for the first couple of years, but college and their careers got in the way," said Itachi. "Karin tried cozying up to me not long after your disappearance. I told her that I had no interest in gold digging whores who go from one brother to the other in a matter of six weeks."

Sasuke laughed softly at his brother's story.

"So where is she now?" he asked.

"Just buried her first husband and looking for a second," said Itachi. "He was a heart surgeon."

"How did he die?"

"Most common ailment to all men over sixty. Heart attack."

Sasuke laughed softly at the thought of Karin married to a man old enough to be her grandfather. He knew the girl was ambitious and would do anything in the pursuit of her own comfort, but he didn't think she would go that far.

"I'd say she was off the list," he said.

Both men readily agreed.

"I still hang out with some friends from high school," suggest Neji. "I could invite them."

"Excellent idea," said Itachi. "Send the list to Mother and she'll take it from there."

"What about Naruto," asked Sasuke, he hoped innocently. Itachi gave him an inquiring look. Even Neji was surprised by Sasuke question.

"He's a cop now," he said. "But I don't know if he'll come. He just recently lost his partner."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," said Sasuke.

Neji noticed the sad look on his friend's face and smiled softly. It seemed that Sasuke really wanted to reconnect with his old friends and what kind of cousin would he be to deny him that.

"I'll ask him," he said.

Sasuke smiled softly. Hopefully, things will be different now.

 **TBC**


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Kakashi sighs as he rubs his silver hair with both hands. IA had been all over him for the past week after the incident at the warehouse. They apparently didn't like the idea of a dirty cop in their police force. Hell, Kakashi didn't like the idea of a dirty cop in his department, but he apparently had one.

For the last week days, the IA had interrogated everyone in the K-9 unit about Kin. Everyone knew she was ambitious and spent more time with her dog than people, but none of them had ever thought she was dirty, and, according to Naruto's wire tap, she had been from the start.

With her confession, the Major Crimes devision could now mount a more solid investigation on Orochimaru, but the king pin had a mountain of lawyers for them to leap through. They had to get through them before they even thought about talking to the snake. He just hoped Asuma could keep up.

At the moment, Kakashi was only concerned about one thing. Naruto. Since the raid and the loss of his canine partner, Naruto had been in a state of depression. Sakura had been at his house a few times a day, trying to get him to come out and talk or even go to the dog park, but the man refused to leave his home.

The IA had wanted to interview Naruto, but Kakashi had adamantly refused to allow them into the young man's home. The man had lost his partner. He did not need to be reminded of it so soon.

Naruto had always been an emotional and sensitive child. He quickly formed bonds with people and animals as soon as meeting them, even to the most stubborn of people. Over the past six months, he had seen how close he became to Kurogane, and how close Kurogane had came to him.

Kakashi remembered watching the two work together for the first time. He wasn't entirely convinced an ex-fight dog would make a good police do. It wasn't realistic. Traditionally, police dogs were trained from the time they were six weeks old to hunt and detect bombs, drugs and other materials. He didn't think an ex-fight dog could be trained to detect any of those in only a couple of months.

But like always, Naruto proved him wrong. Somehow, in just a month and half, he turned an ex-fight dog into a search dog.

Kakashi didn't know what it was, but there was something about the dog that had made him suspicious. He didn't act like a dog should. Jump around at play, running after toys or even play with the other dogs. Instead, he stayed by Naruto's side and watched. Just watched. Like it was studying everything around him and was decided on whether to trust them or not. In all of Kakashi's years of dealing with dogs, he had never met one that had that much level of intelligence.

A knock on the door pulled Kakashi from his thoughts and he looked up to see Asuma standing in his doorway. Since Orochimaru was a Major Crimes case, Asuma took over the case and Kakashi couldn't have been happier. Give him minor drug dealers and dog fights any day.

"I'm about to interrogate Tsuchi," he said. "Want to watch?"

"Yes," said Kakashi. Standing, he followed Asuma toward the interrogation room.

Asuma and Kakashi had been in the same academy class and Asuma had been there when Kakashi had lost his first partner and best friend. It was strange to admit that Kakashi had friends inside the police department, and there were times that he was glad he did.

The interrogation room looked like any other. A single table with a set of four chairs on iether side with a video camera recording everything that went on in the room. Sitting in two of the four chairs was Kin Tsuchi and her lawyer.

Asuma and Kakashi walked in and Asuma sat down in one of the two remaining chairs, dropping a file on the table. Kakashi stood in the corner, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, observing his former subordinate.

"Taka Asano," said the lawyer. "I'll be defending Lieutenant Tsuchi."

"It's just Tsuchi," said Asuma. "She had been stripped of her badge when she was arrested."

"An arrest I'll prove to be done under false assumptions," said Asano.

"We have her confession on tape in front of an undercover officer," said Asuma. "There is nothing to assume."

"A confession made under duress. Inadmissible."

"What's not is the ballistics that came back from the body of a K-9 dog she shot," said Asuma pulling out a photograph of Kurogane.

Kakashi had to look away. He had been on of the first on scene after he heard the gunshots. Kin was unconcious with her hands cuffed behind her back as Naruto cried over Kurogane's body. The young man kept shaking the dog, begging him to wake up, but he never did. It took three officers to pull Naruto way so they could finish processing the scene.

"We have more than enough evidence to put you away, Kin," said Asuma. "Your activities amongst Orochimaru's group. Your 'brothers', Dosu and Zaku, one's dead and the other is in jail."

He leans against the table and looks Kin in the eye as she glares at him.

"Is this how Orochimaru awards your loyalty? A week in jail and a court appointed defender."

"Don't answer him," said Asano. "You have no proof that Tsuchi-san has had any interaction with Orochimaru."

Asuma pulled out papers from the folder.

"At the age of fourteen, Tsuchi Kin was admitted into an orphanage found and funded by Orochimaru, entered a prestigious school and college under a scholarship from a group Orochimaru found. On tape, she admitted to being all but adopted by Orochimaru and started working for him at a young age. As you can see, there is enough proof to show that they have interacted."

Kakashi watched silently. It was speculated that Orochimaru recruited orphans from the orphan he found and funded. When it opened, he made uplifting claims that he didn't want another child living on the streets as he did scrounging for food. It made Orochimaru a pillar in the community, but most of the police force and government officials know the truth behind the rise of his empire.

Oorchimaru may have started out an orphaned street rat, but he quickly grew in power. What background they could gather of him showed that he had joined a drug gang at the age of fifteen and rose to power from there. There, on the street, he finished his education, got a college degree and went into real estate. His empire quickly grew, and most of the police department thought by less than legal means.

"Orochimaru is a generous citizen of the community," said Asano.

"Orochimaru recruits orphans and makes them his lackeys," said Asuma. "He never gets his hands dirty. When they become useless, he throws them away. Like trash."

Kin explodes, jumping out of her chair and throwing her hands on the table.

"How dare you make these assumption about Orochimaru-sama!" she yelled. "Orochimaru-sama is the most generous man in the world!"

"A generous man that makes him money off of the suffering of others," said Kakashi, speaking for the first time. Everyone turned to him in shock, but he didn't let it phaze him. "You know how his operations works. The women that have gone missing in his human trafficking rings, the drugs he distributes and the assassins he dispatches for the right price. Why help him for no gain of your own?"

"I do gain from him!" yelled Kin. "I'm a high ranking official in his operation. He'll reward me once he sets me free!"

"Which will never happen, I'm afraid," said Kakashi. "You've been arrest for multiple crimes, one of which is attempted murder. Life in prison will seem like a pity sentence compared to what waits you."

Asuma put the photographs and papers back into the file, stood and both and Kakashi walked out. Kin was left screeching in the room as her public defender was left to deal with the aftermath.

"Sad when the young is seduced by a snake's venom," said Asuma.

"It's hardly a seduction when the capacity of evil is already there," said Kakashi.

"You know he's going to get her to plead the Stockholm defense," said Asuma reaching for a pack of cigarettes and putting on in his mouth.

"This is entire case is Stockholm," said Kakashi eyeing his friend as he was about to light up. "You know you can't smoke that here."

Asuma groans and takes the cigarette out.

"Wife wants me to quit too," he said. He puts the cigarette pack away and pulls out a pack of gum. "Not as easy as it looks."

"I wouldn't know," said Kakashi as Sakura runs up to him.

"Kakshi-sensei, I'm worried about Naruto," she said. "He hasn't come out of his house for three days and gave Kyuubi to Kiba. I'm afraid he's killed himself."

Kakashi sighs sadly.

"I don't think he did," said Kakashi. "I'll go talk to him."

"Are you sure?" asked Sakura. "I've been yelling through his door for a week and even I haven't been able to get him to talk."

"I got it," said Kakashi. He turned to Asuma. "Call Iruka to take Pakun home for me?"

"Got it," said Asuma.

Kakashi walked out of the precinct. Getting in his car, he drove to the home Naruto had once shared with his mother, that Kushina shared with Minato.

Kakashi had been twelve when he first meet Minato. In and out of three juvenile detention facilities, and the son of a drug ringleader, Kakashi was expected to live a life of crime. Kakashi half believed it himself and hated that he wasn't strong enough to change anything.

Then Minato came. Strolling through the juvie yard and picked Kakashi from a group of boys lounging in the courtyard. Kakashi was keptcal, of course, but Minato had worn down the boy's walls and took Kakashi under his wing. He taught Kakashi how to not just be a man, but a good one. He taught Kakshi self-defense against his father's gang, and helped Kakashi with schoolwork will in juvie. He had been in for two years until he was released and became a ward of the state.

He had only been out a week when Minato died during a gang shoot out. He met Kushina during the funeral, and later Naruto when he walked into the precinct and met the trouble making seven year old.

Like Minato, Kakashi took Naruto under his wing, and even now, he hoped that he made a good man out of the boy.

Walking up to the house, Kakashi knocked loudly on the door. There was no answer. Walking down to the the porch, he reached under the hedge and pulled out a fake rock and took the key from inside. Walking back to the door, he inserted the key into the lock and opened the door.

The place looked normal, except for the pile of mail in front of the door, until he looked in the kitchen. Used plates and food containers were in the sink, on the counter and the table. Kakashi didn't want to guess on the trash.

Hearing voices, he walked in to see the television on a talk show, something he knows Naruto hates, and wrinkled his nose against the subtle smell.

"Have you bathed at all during your pity party, Naruto?" he asked.

There was a rustling on the couch, and Naruto looks at his teacher over the back of the couch.

"Kakashi-sensei?" he said in surprised confusion. "What are you doing here?"

"Making sure you're not dead, obviously." He walks over to the young man and grabbed him by the arm. "Come on."

He steered Naruto toward the stairs.

"What are you doing?!"

"Getting you to bath, obviously," said Kakashi. "Your parents would be very disappointed with you if they saw you now."

"What's the point, they're dead. Like everyone else in my life."

Anger flared in Kakashi and he spun the man around to face him.

"Not everyone," he said. "You still have me, and Iruke, Sakura and all of your friends. You even have Sasuke. We're not dead, and we don't plan to be for a very long time."

"Sasuke?" said Naruto in shock. "Is Sasuke..."

"He had been found, three days ago. Guess you never bothered to read or watch the news during your seclusion."

Kakashi sighed and turned to the wall. On it were pictures of everyone important in Naruto's and Kushina's life. A photo of him, Iruka and Obito as teenagers with Minato behind them. Kushina and Minato's engagement party, and Kushina and Naruto at his seventeenth birthday.

"First time I met your mother was during your dad's funeral. I was just a teenager. I didn't know what to say. She just hugged me and said she was happy to met me. Minato had told her so much about me, Obito and Iruka. I didn't know what to say. All I could do was cry."

Kakashi drew a deep breath as he looked at the pictures. He lifted a hand and touched the photograph of himself and his friends.

"I had lost Obito the year before," he said. "Drive by. He took the bullet meant for me. He had been like me. A good kid. Just lost."

Naruto watched his mentor with a bit of curiousity and awe. He had heard the stories before from his mother, but she spoke of it sadly. Not the anguish that was behind Kakashi's voice.

"Your mother told me the same thing your father did when I lost Obito, 'There's no one that doesn't carry scars on his heart. If there were someone in the world like that, he would be a shallow soul'."

He turns to Naruto and out a hand on the man's shoulder. He was still shocked by how much Naruto resembled Minato, except he had his mother's fox-like grin.

"You're like your dad," he said. "You want to heal the scars on the hearts of people around you, and you do it like your mother. By putting a smile on their face and putting the one's that hurt them behind bars." He turns back to the picture. "When I lost Obito, I felt as if it was my fault. He wouldn't have been there if it wasn't for me. Minato taught me that, I can't control fate, and there no one to blame but the person who pulled the trigger.

"Everybody keeps saying how intelligent Kurogane was, even you. He chose to jump in front of that bullet. He chose for you to live. Live, and put his killer behind bars."

Kakashi turned and walked back downstairs. He barely got three steps when he heard Naruto say his name.

"Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi turned back to him and Naruto gave him a sad, but grateful smile.

"Thanks."

Kakashi nodded and continued down the stairs. He had had a kitchen to clean.

 **TBC**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

"Do you have color in here other than orange?!"

Naruto looked at his friend before turning to her husband in confusion. It had been nearly a week since the end of his seclusion, thought he was still not on duty. When he had opened the door not even ten minutes earlier after an insistent pounding, the last thing he expected to find was Sakura and Lee on the other side, or Sakura running into his room and started throwing clothes around.

"What is she on about?" he asked Lee sitting on his bed with a huge grin.

"We have been invited to a party," said Lee with excitement. He wore a green shirt and blue jeans and Naruto was glad that he had gotten out of his spandex phase during the middle of college.

It surprised the hell out of Naruto when Sakura had started dating Lee. Sakura had been hung over Sasuke since they were twelve when she first saw him at one of Naruto's soccer games. Lee had also been a player and had a crush on Sakura the whole time. It had been love at first sight for the green loving teenager.

Naruto could remember the day when Lee finally got the nerve to proffess his love to Sakura, and the heartbreak when Sakura turned him down.

 _"You wear too much green, you look like you have caterpillars above your eyes, your hair looks like a salad bowl and you spout words like 'spring' and 'youth' every five seconds. There is no way I'd date you."_

That was the most heartbreaking moment Naruto had ever seen. Lee had been devistated for a week until Sai declared they would give him a make-over. They took Lee to Amane, an old friend of the group that owned a beauty salon, and did a complete make-over of Lee. She cut his hair, waxed his eyebrows and gave him some fashion advice.

It had taken a few weeks, but Sakura had warmed up to Lee and after six months, they started dating. Lee had toned down on the hippy quotes and they now were happily married for five years.

"A party?" he asked. "Is Kiba holding another party? He had one two weeks ago."

"Not Kiba, though he'll be there," said Sakura. "Sasuke!"

"Sasuke?"

"Uchiha-kun had asked Neji-kun to send out invitations for his welcome home party," said Lee. "Since they had mostly the same friends, Neji-kun made the list, and we were on it!"

"Including me?!" said Naruto in shock.

"Why not?" asked Sakura. "You guys were friends in school."

"We were on each other's rival teams. I highly doubt that made us friends."

"Well, you got an invite. Didn't you check your email?"

Sakura and Lee knew the answer just as much as Naruto did. Walking to his phone, Naruto pulled up his email and strolled down until he came to Neji's.

 _Uchiha Manor. 7:00 pm Saturday NH_

"I knew you wouldn't have read your email recently, so I stopped by to get you ready," said Sakura.

"You know I hate reading my emails," said Naruto setting his phone down.

"Aha!"

Sakura pulled out a black button down shirt that Naruto had stashed in the back of his closet. Seeing it for the first time in ten years felt like a closed fist around Naruto's throat. It was th

"Not that shirt," he said harshly.

"Why not?" asked Sakura. "It's nice and definitely not orange."

"Not that one!"

Naruto grabbed the shirt and shoved it back into the closet. He sighed and turned to Sakura.

"I'm sorry," he said. "It's just...that's the shirt I wore to Mom's funeral. I swore I wouldn't wear it again."

Sakura's mouth gaped open in shock and a bit of pity. It had only been after his mother's death that Sakura and Naruto had became really close. Before, she only saw him as a loud mouth first string striker on the field. After the funeral, she started hanging out with him and they grew into a close friendship. He felt himself lucky to have Sakura as a friend.

"Right, putting this back," she said hanging the sweater in the exact same spot she had found it. "Now, the other side."

She started running through the other side of the closet. After a minute, she pulls out a navy blue shirt.

"How about this one?" She noticed the price tag still attatched and gave him an inquisitive look.

Naruto shrugs.

"It was on sale," he said.

"No kidding," said Sakura looking at the tag, "but it's all you got that's not orange, so on it goes."

She tossed the shirt and Naruto and walked out. Lee followed to allow Naruto some privacy to dress. Sighing, he turns to Kyuubi lying on his bed.

"I can never win with her."

Kyuubi huffed an agreement. A half hour and a quick shower later, Naruto was ready to go. He rode with Lee and Sakura to the Uchiha manor where the party was taking place.

Driving up to the manor, Naruto was shocked by the vastness of it. It was a Victorian manor with a cirlular driveway leading up to the front door and valet waiting for them. The entire yard from the edge of the sidewalk was fenced in and a gate closed the driveway. Hedge rows lined the fence and a small flower garden was in the grassy middle of the driveway. It was very pictureque.

Naruto was ashamed to say in all the years that Naruto tried to help find Sasuke, he had never came to the Uchiha manor. He met Itachi by coincidence at the precinct and they had started talking. He promised to keep an eye out for Sasuke at the pricinct and they spoke every once in a while.

Looking up at the manor now, he was amazed by what a decent guy Itachi had became. It was massive. Naruto could easily fit his house in it four times.

Lee pulled to the front entrance and they got out as a valet stepped forward to take the keys and gave Lee a ticket with a number on it.

"Wow, they got all out," said Sakura.

"This is crazy," said Naruto in awe. He noticed the security guards walking around the perimeter. "How do we get in?"

"We have invites, so it should be easy."

As they walked up the steps, they noticed the door was opened and a shrill voice came through.

"What do you mean I'm not on the list?! I'm one of his oldest friends."

"I'm sorry, but you're not on the list."

The three friends reached the top and saw Itachi's cousin, Shisui, standing in front of the entrance with a clipboard and pen. Standing in front of him in a low cut summer dress was Karin.

"Check again, or even better, call Sasuke," she said. "He'll tell you to allow me in."

"Sasuke and Itachi made the list themselves," said Shisui. "If they wanted you on the list, you would be." He spotted the friends and smiled. "Hey, Naruto."

"Hey, Shisui."

Shisui was the one that ran the tip hotline when Sasuke was missing. Both had met whenever Naruto visited to check any viable tips to see if they were real.

Karin turned toward them and smirked when she saw them.

"What are you doing here," she said. "This is invite only."

"We know," said Sakura, containing her irritation. "And we have them."

"There's no way in hell do you have invites," she said in shock.

"Actually, they do," said Shisui motioning to the security guards. "Please escort the lady off the premise."

"What?" screeched Karin as two security guards came and took her by her arms. "You can't do this to me? Do you know who I am?!"

"No one cares," said Shisui dismissively before turning to the group with a smile. "Have fun."

"Thanks, Shisui," said Naruto.

They walked in and Naruto was surprised by how small the group was. Almost everyone he knew since high school. There was even Gaara, who Naruto had met in the academy. When they graduated, Gaara was sent to another precinct, but they still managed to get together every know and then for drinks.

"Hey, Gaara, long time no see!" he called. The redhead turned to him and nodded a greeting. "So, where's the guest of honor?"

XXXXXX

Upstairs in his room, Sasuke was fighting off a panic attack. The thought of meeting Naruto again made him remember the last time he had seen Naruto. He could hear the gunshot and see Kin in front of him. He shook his hands, trying to get rid of the clammy feeling.

He had heard people say that getting shot was a burning sensation, but it wasn't. More like getting punched in the chest by a wrecking ball. He couldn't breath and felt like he was underwater. He tried to remember how to overcome a panic attack. Deep breathing. He needed the carbon dioxide he was losing from hyperventilation. He needed to ground himself, but all he could think about was Kin and that gun. The look on her face as she was about to pull the trigger. There had been no regret in her eyes. She wouldn't have minded killing a person she had known for years.

Sasule barely made it to his bathroom and threw up in the toilet bowl. He felt hands grab his arms and he attempted to fight them off until a gentle voice cooed in his ear.

"It's okay, Sasuke. It's okay. Breathe. Breathe."

Sasuke obeyed the voice, taking a deep breathe and slowly exhaling.

"Now, repeat after me. One, two, three, seven, nine, eleven, six."

Sasuke attempted to obey, but his breath kept catching.

"One, two,thr..." His voice caught and his stomach clenched. He groaned, resting his head against the cool porcelain until a cool clothe replaced it.

"Take your time. Seven, eight, nine, twelve, six, one."

Sasuke's second attempt was more successful than the last.

"Seven, eight nine, twelve, six, one."

Sasuke took several more breathes and looked up to see his brother kneeling on the bathroom floor next to him. Itachi's face had a mixture of worry and relief. He was the voice that broke through Sasuke's panic attack.

"Thanks," he said.

"How long have you had these panic attacks?" asked Itachi wetting another wash clothe and handing it to Sasuke. Sasuke used it to wipe his mouth.

"This was actually the first time," he said. "Shocked the hell out of me. I'm fine now."

"So you want to cancel..."

"No, I'm fine," snapped Sasuke which he instantly regretted. "I'm sorry. I just want to get my life back."

"Do you want to see someone about it?"

Sasuke instantly blanched. The thought about talking to someone, revealing his ten years as a dog, working with the police and getting shot by a dirty cop. As much as he wanted to tell someone, he doubted anyone would believe him. Ninety-nine point nine percent of the world believed that magic didn't exist. The one percent were mostly children or psychics that got to haunted house to haunted house freeing spirits from their tortured existence.

Sasuke shook his head.

"No. If I told anyone, even you, what really happened, you'd sent me away for the rest of my life."

"I would not," said Itachi, agast. Sasuke gives him a look and he laugh softly. "Well, only if you start seeing monsters or something. I'm not dad. I'm not keeping things a secret. Everyone knows what happened to me."

"Yeah, I know," said Sasuke.

He remembered reading Itachi coming out with his cancer a couple years before and he was proud that his brother brought it out. Fugaku had spent their entire lives making the Uchihas into this picture perfect family that would be the envy of anyone, but only the family knew how ugly the picture really was.

Sasuke just wished it was as simple with him.

Taking a deep breath, he nods.

"Let's go," he said.

Itachi helps Sasuke up and dusts his knees off. They walked out of Sasuke's room. Sasuke had been walking without a cane, but still limping a bit, for almost two days. He was more than happy to be back on his two legs again and glad that they seemed to buy the pyscological babble they speculated.

They walked to into the backyard where the party was underway and everyone stopped to watch Sasuke anxiously.

"Thanks for coming everyone," he said. "I'm sure you have lots of questions, so I'll answer the important one. When I left, I was in a bad place. It took me awhile to get my head on straight. There was some bumps along the way, some close calls, but the point is, I was lost and now I'm found. I want to get my life in order, and this is the start. I'm glad to see you all again."

He walked amongst the group and joined the party.

"Great to have you back, Sasuke," said Kiba.

"Thanks, dog-breath," said Sasuke.

Instead of being insulted, Kiba barked a laugh.

"Man, never thought I'd miss that," he said.

"I heard you and Hinata married," said Sasuke. "How is that going?"

"Great. We have a daughter and run our own animal clinic."

"I'd like to come an see it someday."

"Hey, man, that'd be great."

Sasuke walked around, greeting all of his one-time friends. Juugo and Suigetsu were absent due to them being out of the country on a research expodition. Sasuke had been shocked to learn that they had gotten together not long after graduating. He supposed it should have been inevitable, but it was still a surprise. They said that that they would come over to hang out the next chance they got to visit.

For an hour he spoke to all of his friends except for the one person he wanted to speak to the most, but was too nervous to. Every time he thought about going over to talk to Naruto, a mini-panic attack crept in and he had to excuse himself from whomever he was talking to just to settled down.

Looking over at the blonde, he saw that want on Naruto's face, but he couldn't bring himself to face him. Not yet.

 **TBC**


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

Sasuke smiled as he spoke with Sakura and her husband Lee. He was shocked to learn that they had gotten married and was even planning a baby. Strangely enough, he could actually see them as parents.

Lee had changed a lot since high school. Gone were the green spandex and orange leg warmers. He wore a green muscle shirt and blue jeans, and thankfully got rid of the bowl cut and caterpillar brows. He did make comments about love, youth and spring at odd moments, but not as often as when he was younger.

"Oh, Ino, Ino, come here!"

Sakura waved to Ino who was standing with Sai, Naruto and Gaara. Sasuke had a moment of irritation at the presence of the pale man, but he was apparently Ino's plus-one. The man was obviously flirting with both Naruto and Gaara and Ino seemed to not mind. At Sakura's call, she turned and smiled before grabbing Sai and dragging him over.

"Sasuke-kun! It's been such a long time," said Ino.

"It has," said Sasuke. He turned to Sai and held out his free hand. "Sasuke Uchiha."

"Sai Yamanaka," said Sai. Sasuke frowned in confusion.

"Your brother?" he asked to Ino and all four started laughing.

"No, Sasuke-kun, Sai's my husband," she said.

"But I saw him flirting with Gaara and Naruto."

"I know," said Ino. "He's a outrageous flirt, but so long as he knows who he belongs to, I don't care. No harm in some harmless flirting. As long as that's what it is, or else someone's going to be missing body parts."

Sai laughed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"My delicate flower," he said, and grunted when Ino elbowed his stomach. The three friends laughed at his antic.

"What is it you do," asked Sasuke.

"I'm a police sketch artist," said Sai, "when I'm not painting."

Sasuke looks at him in surprise.

"You're a painter?" he said.

"I'm not famous or anything. I spent too much time trying to help my wife and her friends find killers."

"What is it that you do, Ino?" asked Sasuke.

"I'm a criminal profiler," said Ino. "I get in the heads of killers and find out why they did it and who their next victim will most likely be."

"Sounds scary."

"It can be, but I know it'll help people in the end."

Sasuke nods until he heard Naruto squeal. He turns in time to see Naruto hug Gaara. Sasuke barely knew the redhead, but Neji invited him because he was a friend of Naruto's and Sasuke wanted the blonde to feel comfortable, so Sasuke approved it. He had known both were close during school, and it looked like their friendship stayed through adulthood.

Sasuke had heard that only five percent of friendships survive after school, and only one percent develop into a romantic relationship. He knew that Gaara and Naruto weren't dating. The three months together gave him enough information to know that Naruto rarely sees Gaara, but that didn't stop the twinge in his chest at the thought of losing Naruto to another.

He felt his chest compress and his vision started to go vertigo.

"Excuse me," he said and hurried over to the juice bar.

XXXXXX

Naruto was surprised by how much fun he was having. The last person he had expected at a Uchiha party was Gaara. Especially when it's a party to welcome Sasuke. During their bouts during the games in high school, Sasuke and Gaara got into fights almost half as much as Sasuke and Naruto on the field.

Gaara had became a potter after graduating, going to an arts institute to master the art. It was where he met his wife Shijima, a painter. Naruto is invited to all of their gallery openings, although he doesn't have enough money to pay for any of it. Gaara did gift him with a traditional Japanese mini-tea set.

Because Gaara lived in Suna, two hours by train ride, both friends didn't get to see each other as much as they wished, which was why Naruto was glad to attend the openings or any event that gaara was able to get to.

"How's Shijima and the kids?" he asked as he picked up a bottle of beer from a concession table. The Uchiha's seem to have forgone waiters and only hired servers to restock food or drinks when it gets low.

"They're good," said Gaara. "They wish you would visit more."

"I wish I could, but with my job..."

Gaara nods.

"I understand." Gaara paused a she gave Naruto a sad look. "I heard about Kyuubi. I'm sorry."

Naruto smiled gratefully. Sometimes, he did forget that Kyuubi was slowly dying. The red fured golden retriever had been a part of his life for ten years. It was hard to think of going about his day without him someday.

"It's going to be hard to replace him," said Naruto.

Gaara gave him a sympathetic look that the redhead rarely had.

"No one's asking you to replace Kyuubi, or Kurogane. They know you never can."

"You should have met him, Gaara," said Naruto. "Kurogane was the smartest dog I ever had. He knew what I wanted him to do before I gave him a signal or spoke a word. It was almost like he and I were of one mind."

Gaara looks at him sadly. He didn't know what it was like to lose a partner, he could feel his friend's pain over losing Kurogane. He was sad to have not met the dog that had changed his friend's life. Naruto lived for his friends and his dogs.

"Are you going to take up a replacement?" asked Gaara.

"If I want to stay on the K-9 division, I'll have do. I doubt they would be as good as Kurogane and Kyuubi."

"You always said the dog is as good as the trainer, and I don't know anyone better than you."

"Thanks, Gaara," said Naruto gratefully, but there was still an edge of sadness in his voice. Gaara decided to try and lighten the mood.

"I was thinking about opening a crafts store. Teach others and maybe have days where customers could paint the wares."

Naruto looked at his friend in shock and and smiled widely.

"That's awesome man!" he said. "I'll have to come visit and see."

"I sure hope so. I'm thinking of setting up shop here."

Naruto jumped with a squeal and hugged his friend.

"Finally, no two hour train ride to visit!" he said. Gaara awkwardly hugged him back. He had gotten used to the touchy-feely side of Naruto, but it still left him awkward at times.

Naruto turned and watched as Sasuke moved through the crowd. He seemed to be all right one second, and pale the next. Several times he excused himself from a group to go to drink a glass of water. As a cop, Naruto could see the signs of a panic attack easily.

"Excuse me," he said and walked over to the raven haired man. Sasuke had just finished speaking with Sakura and Lee and was now selecting a glass of water from the food and drinks table.

"I would try something a little stronger."

Sasuke visibly jumped and turned to see Naruto standing behind him. He froze in his spot. He knew he would have to get around to talking to Naruto, but every time he thought about it, he got caught in a panic attack and had to excuse himself from whoever he was talking to. Now, Naruto was standing behind him and he had absolutely nothing to say.

Naruto watched as Sasuke's face went even paler than Sai's. Naruto was no EMT but he knew that wasn't a very good sign.

"Are you okay?" he asked in concern. "Here, let's sit you down."

Taking Sasuke by the arm, Naruto lead him to one of the many lawn chairs carefully set around the backyard pool and bonfire area, but also away from the party. Grabbing a bottle of water along the way, he popped the cap and handed it to Sasuke, who drank half the bottle before taking a breathe. He positioned Sasuke's head between his knees, and Sasuke took the signal to breathe slowly.

Itachi appeared after a minute and Naruto signaled him that they were all right and the older Uchiha walked off to distract the rest of the guests away from the absence of the guest of honor. After a couple more minutes, Sasuke's color was better and his shaking had stopped.

"You okay now?" asked Naruto.

Sasuke nodded.

"Sorry, I was just..."

His voice froze, unable to say the words. Surprisingly, Naruto seemed to understand.

"It's overwhelming. Being away for so long and suddenly surrounded by people you know. You want to start your life over again, but you're afraid you're not ready to. And you're too scared to admit it."

Sasuke could only nod. He was afraid. He was afraid that he was going to screw up the second chance Tsunade gave him and Naruto wouldn't want anything to do with him, and he was too scared to admit it.

"Let's talk about something else," said Naruto. "Say the first thing that comes to mind."

"How did you know what to do?" asked Sasuke.

"I've suffered from a few of them myself." Sasuke gave him a shocked look and Naruto laughed. "It's true. My first week on the job, I got into a shoot out with some robbers. For a while afterwards, I jumped at everything."

"How did you get over it?" asked Sasuke.

"I talked. I found someone I could talk to and Kyuubi helped. Dogs are very good with stuff like that. Trained right, and they can help anyone with anything." Naruto was silent for a moment as he looked at Sasuke with a small smile. "If you ever want to talk, I'm here."

Sasuke frowned slightly, and then smiled.

"I'd like that, but not right now."

Naruto didn't look disappointed. Instead he gave a huge smile that made Sasule smile wider.

"Whenever you're ready," he said.

After that, they spoke of old times and the pranks each school gave each other. Because both schools were rivals, trying to outprank each other had became a tradition. The pranks never went very far and were harmless, so unless they got out of hand,the principles looked the other way.

Naruto was howling with laughter as Sasuke laughed next to him in a softer tone.

"I wish I saw the look on you guys faces. That was the best prank I ever came up with."

"You mean you were the one who did that?" asked Sasuke. "The place stank for a week. How did you do it anyway?"

"Not easily. Do you know how hard it was to get that pig in there? Thing kept trying to escape."

"I can imagine. Where do you even get barnyard animals anyway?"

"I never reveal my sources."

Sasuke paused for a moment before speaking.

"It was Kiba wasn't it?"

Naruto fakes an annoying groan and Sasuke laughed.

"Curse me for only having one friend with access to barn animals."

Both laughed and the talk turned to Naruto's first week in the force. Sasuke was forcing himself to not burst out laughing as Naruto retold his tale.

"So there I was, running after this guy, and I grab him by the pants,. Only no one told me that they were velcro, so they ripped right off."

Sasuke burst out laughing. Fortunatley for him, Naruto was as well.

"Please tell me he was wearing underwear," he said.

"No, no he was not."

Both laughed loudly and tried to stiffle them as Itachi walked over with a smile on his face.

"Sasuke, while I commend your rekindled friendship, you have other guests to see to," he said.

Naruto laughed in embarressment as Sasuke looked embarressed.

"Right, sorry, aniki."

"That's okay," said Naruto. "I haven't meet Yahiko yet. I can't wait to meet the little guy."

"Then how about coffee later?" asked Sasuke nervously. "We can talk more and I'll meet Kyuubi."

"Sure," said Naruto excited. "Here, let me give you my number."

They exchanged numbers and Naruto got up to greet Kanon and Yahiko. After Naruto left, Itachi took an envelope from his back pocket and handed it to Sasuke.

"This came by courier,"he said.

Sasuke took the envelope and saw just his name and address. No return address. He also noticed it unopened. Since his return, Itachi had carefully screened his mail and calls to keep reporters and hate mail away from Sasuke. Itachi had thought he had been discreet, but Sasuke knew his brother better than himself. He gave Itachi a curious look.

"You didn't read it?" he asked.

"I figured it was time for you to take a step in the world," said Itachi and turned to join his wife and son with Naruto. Sasuke opened the envelope and took out the single sheet of paper.

 _Friday 8 am Ichiraku Cafe_

Sasuke looked at the note in confusion. Whoever sent this knew his schedule, since he had none. The date was in two days so he was free. But who sent it and why so discreet?

"Hey, Sasuke!" He looked up to see Naruto waving at him, Yahiko in his arms and tugging on his hair. Putting note in his pocket, he got up and joined the party.

 **TBC**


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

Sasuke walked into the diner and looked around. Various diners ate and talked all around the room. He didn't see anyone that looked to be waiting for him so he sat down at an empty booth and ordered a coffee and English breakfast.

Sasuke had no idea who had sent to note to him three days ago. He had debated on not coming, but curiousity overran his caution and he found himself walking out the door at seven-thirty and walking into the Ichiraku Diner with ten minutes to spare.

His relationship with Naruto was coming along. Both of them texted or called every afternoon. Naruto proposed that they walk Kyuubi together and Sasuke had agreed. They scheduled it for that afternoon.

His breakfast had just arrived when a man sat down in the bench opposite him.

"Coffee, please? Thank you," said a man's voice and Sasuke looked up in surprise.

"Iruka?" he said in shock before he could stop himself. "What are you doing here?"

"Hello, Sasuke," said Iruka with a smile. "I'm here to see you. I was told you got the note."

"I did," said Sasuke.

"Then I'm here to listen."

Sasuke was confused on why Iruka was there. The only time he had met Iruka was at the station. The life-partner of the captain of the K-9 unit would visit, mostly to make sure Kakashi was actually doing his job, but sometimes to socialize with the officers. The man was kind and patient, and also stern when needed to be. He didn't take no for an answer when it came to getting things done and helped whenever he could.

But Sasuke had been a dog when they had met. He should not know that Sasuke had once been Kurogane.

"I don't understand," said Sasuke confused. "You're here to counsel me?"

"I minored in psychology before I joined law enforcement," said Iruka as the waitress set a cup of coffee on the table with a small pitcher of creamer. "Thank you."

"What makes you think I need therapy? I've been evaluated by the doctors at the hospital."

"But none of them would believe that you had been a dog for ten years."

Sasuke saw the point of that. Not even his brother would believe his story, despite Itachi being the first person to see him after his transformation. He knew Itachi wanted Sasuke to tell him what happened, but Sasuke didn't want to see the looked of disbelief on Itachi's face, or Itachi possibly placing him in an institute.

It might be a good idea to talk with Iruka. There were a lot of things he wanted to get around.

"One question, though," he said.

"Shoot," said Iruka sipping his coffee.

"What are you? I mean, other than a police officer."

"I am someone who can help you. I was one of the ones that voted for you."

"Thanks," said Sasuke.

For the next two hours, Sasuke and Iruka spoke of little things. Sasuke reintroduction to human life, his brother and nephew, his reaquantance with his friends. They talked about his father's death and his feelings toward it.

"I actually never felt freer," said said Sasuke. "My father always constricted my life. Since being turned into a dog and hearing about his death, I felt like I could finally be myself."

"You're not even a little sad that he died?" asked Iruka. "He was your father."

"That man provided the sperm, but he was by no means a father. Itachi and Mom raised me, not him."

"Did you feel anything?"

Sasuke shrugged. "I guess I was a little sad, but I was more angry. I wanted to prove that I wasn't the useless son he said I was. That I wasn't just the _spare."_

"Have you thought about what you want to do now that you're human again?"

Sasuke paused for a moment to think. He had taken serious thought over what he wanted to do next now that he was human again, but everything he thought of didn't feel right. He didn't want to work in his father's company, he was more than happy to let Itachi take care of all that, but he knew he had to do something. He couldn't just sit around the mansion and be lazy.

"I know I want to help people," he said. "I want to take what I learned on the streets to help them. People and animals."

"That admirable," said Iruka. "But it'll be hard work. Think you can do it?"

"I hope so, but I'm still..."

"Healing. I understand. Therapy helps, and also companionship. You should ask Naruto for advice."

"Why?"

"You're meeting him later, aren't you?"

Sasuke looked at him in shock.

"How did you...Naruto."

"He's very happy that you're back," said Iruka. "He also misses Kurogane. I think together you'll both help each other."

Sasuke paused to think that over as he left to meet up with Naruto. He didn't know why Iruka said what he did. How could he help Naruto? He had so many friends to help him with "his death".

Sasuke did want to be closer to Naruto. During his time as a dog, Sasuke had fallen in love with the hyperactive blonde and couldn't think of a life without him. Now as a human, he didn't know how they were going to become closer. They had very little in common except for soccer.

Naruto had the morning shift and had just gotten off as Sasuke pulled up to the station. Naruto wore a orange shirt and blue jeans after spending the night doing patrols. He didn't think anyone would look in orange, but somehow, Naruto did.

Over the last few days, Sasuke and Naruto conversed through texts and a couple phone calls. They talked about their hobbies and movies. Naruto steered away from the subject of what happened to Sasuke in the last ten years and instead told about his time at the academy and Naruto told some more embarressing arrests. When Sasuke invited Naruto out for coffee, Naruto declined.

"I have something better," said the blonde.

And that was how Sasuke had came to picking Naruto up at the station that afternoon.

"I'm glad your able to come," said Naruto as he got in. "I want to show you something."

"Okay," said Sasuke a little hesitate but also curious.

"You'll love it, trust me."

Sasuke nodded, still hesitant. He followed Naruto's directions outside of town and to what appeared to be a farm house. Infront of the Western farmhouse was a woman that looked a lot like Kiba, right down to the facial markings. Next to her was a dark grey dog that looked almost wolfish to Sasuke. He was certainly larger than Sasuke was when he had been a dog and had a scar that ran down his right eye.

Sasuke parked in front of the house and both men got out.

"About time you came to visit, brat," she said walking over to them. "I've had enough of talking to my idiot of a son. And it was about time for you to heck on your pups."

"I've brought some help," said Naruto waving at Sasuke.

"The Uchiha kid?" Naruto nodded and the woman walked over to him. Sasuke felt intimidated by the mere presence of the woman. "I'm Tsume Inuzuka. This is my partner, Kuromaru."

"She's Kiba's mom," said Naruto. "She helped trained me Kyuubi."

"She trains police dogs?" asked Sasuke curiously.

"As well as military and service dogs," said Tsume. "We also run a shelter for abandoned and abused dogs."

"A kennel?" asked Sasuke in surprise.

"We prefer shelter," said Tsume. Sasuke heard the slight offense in her voice and quickly apologized. "Naruto helps out every once in a while and a couple months ago, Kyuubi serviced one of our girls and is expecting a litter soon."

"How is the mom?" asked Naruto.

"She's doing good. In a couple of months, a healthy litter will be born."

Naruto smiled and Sasuke couldn't help but smile back. In one of their many talks, Sasuke told Naruto that he liked dogs and even helped a few strays while he was gone. He failed to mention that he was a dog at the time, but he didn't think it mattered. As soon as he mentioned it, Naruto went into a discussion about the abuse of strays and domestic dogs. Sasuke didn't have the heart to interrupt him. To hear Naruto speak so passionately about something made Sasuke smile.

"Come on," said Naruto pulling Sasuke by the arm toward the back of the house. Sasuke followed him.

Around back were several large barns and a chain-linked fence. The fenced area was filled with dogs of all sizes running around playing either with each other or handlers. Sasuke counted at least fifteen handlers. Not enough to take care of all the dogs in the area.

"Over there are the puppies that have been rescued either from off the street, abused homes or puppy mills," said Naruto pointing to a building. "And over there is the clinic. There's where they train the dogs for service. And over there are the problem cases."

"Problem cases?" asked Sasuke.

"Yeah, dogs that are so abused and mistreated that they'll attack anyone or anything. They require individual work because each one has a different temperment."

"How long have you been volunteering here?" asked Sasuke.

"Since I was a kid," said Naruto. "Kiba brought me here, and I just kept coming. I want to help, but I don't have enough time. I love my job and I don't want to quit, but if they had more hands to help, then maybe I would feel better about leaving here every day. They're so short handed."

"Naruto, this is amazing."

During the months he had been living with Naruto, Naruto would leave a couple times a week or on his day off. Sometimes he even took Kyuubi with him. Sasuke never figured out where Naruto had been going to until now.

Naruto lead him into a barn that housed a mass of puppies. Two handlers greeted Naruto enthusiastically and Naruto waved back as he got into the pen with the puppies.

"I had a dog, Kurogane, that came from a past not unlike these guys," said Naruto. "But I never brought him here because I didn't want him to revert back to his fighting days. Sometimes fight dogs will revert back when faced with other fight dogs. He made such progress as a police dog. I didn't want him to throw all that work away."

Sasuke watched as Naruto played and petted the puppies. This was another side of Naruto Sasuke did not know, but he desperately wanted to. Naruto wanted to help these dogs and Sasuke knew what that felt like to live in abusive or on the street.

The facility that he could see so far looked like it was on it's last legs. The Inuzukas were known to train the best dogs in the city, but this was obviously a side project that didn't generate enough money.

Looking around the room, his gaze came upon a puppy that was smaller than the rest. It had a black top coat and white bottom with a curled tail and thick fur. A larger puppy was attempting bully him, but the smaller pup was holding his own.

"That's an Alaskan Husky," said one of the handlers. "We rescued her six weeks ago. Someone found her as a newborn in a trash can, poor thing. She was so small we didn't expect her to survive."

"Tough little girl," said Sasuke.

"It's a good sign. Newborn and separated by her mother. Someone's especially cruel."

"She doesn't look pure-breed."

"Because she's not. See her eyes?" Sasuke did. They were a vivid shade of blue. Icy. They almost seemed to glow. "We think a stray Australian Shepherd or something with it mixed might of got in the pen and mated with the mother."

"What's her name?"

"Haven't named her yet. We like to name them for their personality. You can play with her if you want."

The handler left and Sasuke turned back to the puppy. Her ran around, chasing the other puppies despite her smaller size.

The puppy ran over to Sasuke and sniffed his leg. Looking up at him, she barked and sat down expectantly.

"Looks, like you made a friend."

Sasuke turned to see Naruto smiling at him. Sasuke reached down picked the puppy up. The puppy struggled to lick his face. Sasuke smiled a little.

"She about six weeks old," said Naruto. "Old enough to be away from her mother and trained."

Sasuke didn't know what made him decide to take the dog home with him. One second they were in the puppy room and the next he was with Tsume signing some papers.

"Here's our basic care package," said Tsume handing him a bag full of dog items. Sasuke saw a water bowl and feed dish, leash and dollar and a small bag of puppy food. "Lastly, what are you going to name her?"

"Aoi."

 **TBC**


	20. Chapter 20 revised

**Chapter 20**

Sasuke had known that taking care of a dog, not being one, was a lot of responsibility. He just didn't know that training a puppy required a lot of patience. Such as trying to guess when Aoi needed to go to the bathroom. He knew a puppy needed to be let out several times a day, but it was knowing when that stumped Sasuke. Sometimes, he guessed right and other times not.

Such as this time. He looked down at the puddle on the kitchen floor and to the puppy staring innocently at him. Ever since Sasuke adopted her, Aoi had followed Sasuke everywhere he went. Well, nearly everywhere. Sasuke wouldn't let her in the bathroom while he went, but she did a good immitation of a guard dog, yapping at anyone that came close to the door. It was funny at times and Kanon laughed every time.

"No treat," he said.

Aoi whined and placed her head on her paws. Sighing, Sasuke went to get the mop.

"Looks like your taking this like a champ," said Itachi as Sasuke cleaned the floor. Sasuke shot his brother a glare and Itachi laughed. "Did you start training her yet?"

"Naruto's giving me lessons this afternoon," said Sasuke. Sasuke paused before speaking again. "I'm thinking of training her as a service dog."

Itachi looked at him in shock.

"For..for you?"

"For me," said Sasuke returning the mop to the broom closet before walking to the table and sitting down. "For a lot of people."

"Sounds serious. I'll grab the coffee."

Sasuke laughed softly. It was a habit their mother had when they had teenage troubles. She would make a cup of coffee, sit them down at the table, and drink until Itachi or Sasuke felt like talking. Sasuke stopped when he was fifteen. When he started rebelling against his father. It was one of his favorite memories.

Five minutes later, Itachi set two cups of coffee on the table and Itachi sat down drinking his. Sasuke slowly drank his before talking a minute later.

"When I went to the animal shelter Naruto volunteers at, it was so debilitated. I knew the Inuzukas were well off, but that place was standing on a hope and a prayer."

"They lost the majority of their money four years ago," said Itachi. "A fire broke out in their old headquarters. Arson. Lost a lot of dogs. The place their staying at right now was a cattle ranch once, but most of their money went towards trying to find more dogs to start over. Damn breeds were charging them an arm and a leg just to brag that they sold a dog to the famed Inuzukas."

"I want to help them," said Sasuke. "Start up a foundation to help all the dogs. Nobody cares about dogs that had once been on the street. They think they go to the pound to be put down or something. They don't care that some of them can be domesticated and placed in a happy home. Aoi was thrown away because she wasn't the breed a person wanted. How sick is that?"

"The world isn't perfect, Sasuke," said Itachi. "As much as we try for it to be."

"I know, aniki," said Sasuke. "But I just want to make their lives easier."

Itachi paused in thought for a moment before nodding.

"I'll talk to the lawyers and board," he said.

Sasuke smiled at him appreciatively and they heard the front door thrown open.

"Where's my son?!"

Both brothers looked at each other in shock before walking out to see Mikato walking in wearing a sundress, sandals and clutching her large purse. When she catch sight of Sasuke, she dropped her purse and pressed her clutched hands to her mouth.

When Mikato had gotten word that Sasuke had returned, she was still over the Pacific Ocean with no way to return to Japan. She said that she would get onto the first plane to Japan as soon as she reached a city with an international airport. Until then, Sasuke made her promise to enjoy her much needed cruise.

Sasuke smiled at his mother, happy to see her again after so long.

"Hi, Mom," he said.

Mikato walked over to Sasuke and hesitantly reached toward him. Almost as is she was afraid he would disappear any second. Sasuke held his hand up reassuringly.

"I'm here, Mom," he said. "I'm back."

Mikoto touched his hand and after a moment of assurance that he was there, grabbed him into a hug. Sasuke hugged her back as he felt his mother's tears against his shoulder. It surprised him to find that he was taller than his mother, but at the moment he was content in holding her.

Then, just as suddenly as she hugged him, Mikoto pushed him off and slapped him acrosssed the face.

"Mother!" said Itachi in shock.

"No, I deserved that," said Sasuke rubbing his stinging cheek.

"You bet you did!" yelled Mikoto. "Do you know how worried sick we were?! Staying here, hoping, praying, for a call or something just to let us know your alive while you were gallivanting off to who knows where!"

"I wasn't gallivanting..." Sasuke said, trying to defend himself but Mikoto interrupted him.

"I don't care what you were doing, you weren't home! We searched everywhere for you, worried sick, but did you care..."

"I did care, Mom," said Sasuke hurriedly. "I still do."

"Then why didn't you come home?" she asked softly, but still mixed with anger and sadness.

Sasuke desperately wanted to tell her everything. He wanted to tell her what had happened to him. Iruka encouraged him to talk more about his experience on the street, even if he had to keep that he had been a canine.

It still shocked Sasuke that Iruka was a part of the group that had changed him into a dog in the first place. Especially one of the ones that voted for him to have a second chance. The man seemed so normal, which was weird given who his life-partner was. They spoke every other day at the diner and spoke about random stuff. When Iruka heard that Sasuke had taken up a dog and was going to train Aoi as a service dog, he was very approving.

A bark from their feet made them look down to see Aoi barking and wagging her tail. She was looking up at Mikoto expectingly. Mikoto's anger faded at the sight of the puppy.

"Oh, isn't she adorable!" she said bending down and petting her. "What's her name?"

"Aoi," said Sasuke. "I adopted her a couple days ago. I'm going to certify her as a service dog, as soon as I get her trained."

"Well, I can come up with a list of trainers who can..."

"Sasuke already chose a trainer, Mom," said Itachi.

Mikoto looked at her sons curiously.

"Who?"

"Naruto Uzumaki. He's an old friend of Sasuke's that trains police dogs."

"Right now, I'd settle for her going to the bathroom outside," said Sasuke and turned to see Aoi sniffing around the floor. He rushed over when he saw her assume the position. "No, Aoi! That's not a toilet!"

Sasuke grabbed her around the middle and rushed her outside. Mikoto laughed.

"Oh, the potty days. I remember Sasuke absolutely refused to use the toilet," she said.

"I remember," said Itachi with an amused grin. "He was convinced the toilet was going to swallow him up."

"You were the one that told me it would!" yelled Sasuke from outside.

Itachi laughed as Mikoto glared at her eldest son.

"It took him two years to use the toilet!" she said.

"I know," he said laughing. "It made good embaressing stories to tell future boyfriends."

"I will teach Aoi to fetch your balls!" yelled Sasuke.

"I hope that was rhetorical."

Sasuke turned to find Naruto standing by his car with an amused smirk and Kyuubi next to him.

"Naruto, hi," said Sasuke with a welcoming smile.

"Hi, Sasuke," said Naruto.

Kyuubi barked and bounded over to Sasuke, who froze. He had seen how protective the dog was with Naruto and wondered if Kyuubi saw Sasuke as a threat. He doubted Kyuubi would actually attack him. Naruto had trained him too well.

"Kyuubi, don't!" yelled Naruto reaching over to grab Kyuubi but missed. Kyuubi hadn't run after something without Naruto's permission since he had been a puppy. It shocked him that Kyuubi walked over to Sasuke and wagged his tail. He butted his head against Sasuke's hand and rolled over as Sasuke petted him.

"How are you doing boy?" asked Sasuke as he rubbed Kyuubi's belly.

"I'm sorry," said Naruto walking over to them. "He's never done that before."

Sasuke shook his head.

"It's fine," said Sasuke petting one of Kyuubi's ears. "Just getting acquainted, right, Kyu?"

Kyuubi woofed in response and walked over to Aoi who had finished her business. Sasuke reached into his pocket and pulled out a bag of dog biscuits and handed her one. Aoi happily ate her treat and Sasuke gave one to Kyuubi.

"I see potty training is going well," said Naruto.

Sasuke laughed softly.

"I wish. She nearly went on the eight billion dollar rug."

Naruto looked at him in utter shock.

"Why the hell do you have an eight billion dollar rug on your floor?! I'd hang it or something."

Sasuke shrugged.

"I don't know. I think my dad bought it. It was all about impressions with him."

"You don't talk about your dad, do you?"

"And there's a reason for that," said Sasuke. The scorn was evident in his voice. Naruto opened his mouth to ask why when a voice spoke out.

"You must be Naruto Uzumaki." Both men turned to see Mikoto walk toward them. She walked over with a grace Naruto would have expected from fashion models, or royalty. He was relieved when she held out her hand to shake instead of kissing it. "I'm Mikoto Uchiha. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Pleasure to meet you too, Uchiha-san," said Naruto shaking her hand. Mikoto gave an amused laugh.

"Please, call me Mikoto. Anyone who got Sasuke to adopt a dog deserves it."

"You mean Sasuke didn't like dogs?" asked Naruto in shock. He had been such a natural at the shelter and the dogs were taken with him as well.

"I don't hate dogs," said Sasuke defensively.

"Of course not, Sasuke," said Mikoto. "When he was a boy, Sasuke would beg Fugaku for a dog, but his father never let him."

"Why?" asked Naruto.

"Eight billion dollar rugs," said Sasuke.

Mikoto nodded.

"Eventually, Sasuke stopped asking and I thought he must have forgot."

"I guess not," said Naruto watching Sasuke playing with Aoi.

Mikoto saw the look Naruto gave Sasuke and smiled. It would do Sasuke good to have a friend like Naruto.

"May I offer you something to drink, Naruto?" she asked. "Beer? I'm sure Itachi as a few in the refridgerator."

"Coffee would be fine," said Naruto.

Smiling, Mikoto lead Naruto inside, Sasuke, Aoi and Kyuubi following after her.

For an hour, the four talked about ordinary things, that quickly became embarressing when Mikoto pulled out Sasuke's baby pictures. After a hardy lunch and cofee, Naruto took Sasuke to the back yard to begin Aoi's training.

After three hours of trying to get her to sit, and her only doing it once not on command, Naruto called for a break and they sat on a swing in the bonfire area sipping lemonade while the dogs happily drank water from bowls provided by the maid.

"Sasuke, can I ask you something and pray you don't hit me," asked Naruto after a minute of sitting.

"Go ahead."

"What happened to you, Sasuke? You were always so angry in high school, and then you took off. Why? You had the perfect life..."

"Perfect?" spat Sasuke angrily. "Nothing about my life was perfect. My entire life was a lie."

Naruto gulped at the intense hate and anger coming from Sasuke's voice. Placing a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, he moved to make Sasuke face him.

"Sasuke, tell me, what happened?" asked Naruto.

Sasuke took a deep breathe and was silent for a minute before talking again.

"You know that my brother is six years older than me, right?" Naruto nods. "When he was three, he was diagonosed with cancer. His only way to survive was a constant stream chemo, blood transfusion and a bone marrow transplant. They tested everyone in the family. None were a match. They told my parents, 'It's okay. You're young. You can have another son'."

"But Itachi's alive," said Naruto.

Sasuke nodded.

"Because of me," he said. "Father-Fugaku-never liked the idea of failure, and he viewed allowing your only son to die as a failure. So he decided to create the perfect donor."

"You're a savior baby?" said Naruto in shock.

He had heard of them, but never thought parents would go so far as to sign one of their children's lives over in favor of another. The process was done by in-vitro ferlization and genetic tampering to make the child as healthy as possible. When the child was old enough, the operations would begin. The child would be forced to give up blood, bone, even their lives to save their sibling.

Sasuke shook his head.

"No, but I'm a perfect genetic match to Itachi," he said. At Naruto's confusion, he explained further. "They tried twice. The second time, the baby was still born and Mother had to have an emergency hysterectomy. She couldn't have more children."

"Then how are you here?" asked Naruto.

"As luck would have it, Fugaku's mistress became pregnant. Her name was Chiharu. She was my mother's sister. Fugaku used every bit of the power he held to make sure no one knew that he was about to have a bastard. He moved her into the mansion and made the house staff sign confidenciality papers. He was very thorough.

"During the nine months of her pregnancy, Chiharu start to become unhinged. She started to believe that Fugaku would leave Mother and start a family with her. By the time I was born, she was tried to kill Mother twice. He had to put her in a mental instituation and swept everything under the rug."

"How did you find out about this?" asked Naruto.

"When I was twelve, Chiharu was supposedly rehabilitated and placed in a half-way house. A week later, she escaped and tracked me down. She kidnapped me, and in her depleting mental state, she told me everything. How she was my real mother and that we were going to be a family. For a week, she kept me with her, and I had a front seat of all of her delusions. She firmly believed she was married to Fugaku, and that we were a family. When the cops finally found me, I knew everything. She was placed in a high security mental prison and I went back home."

"But, she didn't kidnap you," said Naruto. "She's your mother, so she technically didn't kidnap you."

"Remember when I said Fugaku didn't want anyone to know he was having a bastard? He forced Mother to wear fake pregnancy bellies for months and when I was born, he paid the doctor to write Mother's name on the birth certificate. Biologically, she was my mother. Legally is a different story. Fugaku wanted to sweep it all under the rug again. Told me to never tell anyone ever, and that when my acting out started."

"Oh, God, Sasuke." Naruto hugged him and Sasuke returned it. "I'm so sorry. Fathers should never do that."

"It's okay," said Sasuke. "I stopped considering him my father years ago. My only family was Mother and Itachi."

Naruto was silent for a minute. He never heard of anyone having to grow up in such an uncaring way. He had grown up with a mother that loved him and people to take care of him. Sasuke had nearly no one.

"When I was thirteen, Itachi went into liver failure," continued Sasuke. "Since he had a rare blood type, there was only one available compatible donor."

"You," said Naruto and Sasuke nodded.

"Itachi sued Fugaku for medical emancipation. He got a lawyer and became medically independent. He could refuse anything going into his body without Fugaku's influence." Sasuke looked down with a hint of sadness and revernce. "He did it for me. He didn't want Fugaku controlling my life over his, so he took himself out of the equation."

Naruto wrapped an arm around Sasuke and held him close. It was hard for him to think that a father put one child above the other. All his life, he was taught that parents loved their children unconditionally, but time on the force proved that wasn't always true.

"As luck would have it, a motorist had died in an accident and was an organ donor. He was a biological match," continued Sasuke. "He's lucky to survive. I'm glad he did and can have a life of his own."

"Well, I'm glad both of you are okay," said Naruto. "And I'm glad you trust me enough to tell me. I know it couldn't have been easy."

"Just another way my life is completely and utterly FUBAR. I want to change my life around, and I think I need some help."

"I'll be there to help the whole way," said Naruto. Sasuke smiled at him gratefully before Naruto stoodback up. "Now, let's get that pup under control."

Sasuke laughed and got up to returning to training.

 **TBC**

I revised this because after I posted the previous entry, I realized I needed to add more to the story, and here it is. I would like to say thank you to all my loyal readers and hope you like this chapter as much as the rest.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

"Sit, Aoi."

Aoi looked at Sasuke and cocked her head. Even after two weeks of training, the puppy still didn't do even the simplest of commands. Naruto taught Sasuke that training a puppy was about patience and confidence.

"You have to show her who's alpha, Sasuke," said Naruto. "You're her owner, friend, and alpha. You have to show it to her. Watch me."

He turned to Kyuubi who had been napping nearby on a patch of grass. Every time Naruto visits to help Sasuke train Aoi, he brings Kyuubi with him, and every time, Kyuubi greets him like an old friend. Sasuke was actually glad that Kyuubi remembered him. At least somebody did.

"Kyuubi," called Naruto and Kyuubi perked his head up. "Come."

Kyuubi stood and walked over to Naruto, doggy grin and tail wagging.

"Sit."

Kyuubi sat.

"Lay down."

Kyuubi laid down. He preformed every trick Naruto commanded of him. Sasuke remembered when Naruto taught him those trick when he was a dog. At the time, he did them to avoid suspicion. He never thought that there was a a science behind the training. When Kyuubi was allowed to go back to his nap, Naruto turned back to Sasuke.

"See? You have to be kind but stern at the same time."

Sasuke nodded and turned to Aoi. The puppy was trying to get Kyuubi to play with her, but the older dog remained laying on the grass.

"Aoi," called Sasuke and the puppy ran toward her owner. Sasuke held out the treat. "Sit."

Aoi sat. Sasuke smiled in relief and handed the puppy the treat.

"Good girl," he said petting her as she ate her treat and tried to lick his hands at the same time. "That's a good girl."

"Now we just have to make sure it wasn't a fluke," said Naruto.

"Now if only I can get her to go to the bathroom outside," said Sasuke turning to Naruto.

"That's where a water gun comes in."

During Naruto's visits the last couple of weeks, Mikoto always greets Naruto with a glass of lemonade and snacks. Sometimes coffee. Sasuke had half a thought that his mother had all but adopted the police officer if she could. Naruto seemed to enjoy the casualness and easily go comfortable around the Uchihas.

When Sasuke told Naruto about his charity idea, Naruto was completely onboard. He helped Sasuke with ideas and took Sasuke to the Inuzuka's shelter to help volunteer. Sasuke donated enough money to fix up the barn, expand the kennels and buy more food. Itachi had already set up a meeting with investor to help start up the foundations to help the homeless and strays.

That day, though, Sasuke could tell something was on Naruto's mind. After living with the man for a few months, he easily learned the blonde's tells. Since he didn't hear anything new on the news about Orochimaru, he assumed the department didn't have anything new. He didn't want to say anything right away and let on that he knew something was wrong.

Finally, during break, Sasuke asked him.

"Naruto, is everything all right at work?" he asked.

Naruto looked up at him in surprise with half a cookie in his mouth and reaching for another. Even during their rivalry days, Naruto's appetite was halftime, Naruto would make a beeline for the consession stand and order half the menu. Sasuke wondered how he could eat all of it and still be able to play, but now he figured Naruto had a higher metabolism that normal.

"What do you mean?" he asked after finishing the other half of the cookie.

"Well, you seem to be out of it a bit," said Sasuke. "Has something happened in the investigation?"

Naruto set the cookie down and dusted his fingers on a napkin. Sasuke was shocked by his manners.

"I can't really discuss the details..." he started and Sasuke nodded. "We're having trouble finding out what companies the warehouse's that were used belong to. Apparently they're owned by shell companies of shell companies of shell companies."

"If anyone's going to find it, you are," said Sasuke.

Naruto was shocked by by how encouraging Sasuke had become. He remembered when they were preteens and the boy had constantly insulted and put him down. It was almost scary.

"Thanks, Sasuke," he said.

"Sasuke." They turn to see Mikoto standing by the porch. She had an almost anxious look on her face. "Your uncle is here to see you."

"Your uncle?" asked Naruto curiously.

Sasuke was shocked and anxious. He had only met Madara a couple of times before his canine transformation, and each time Madara gave him a sick feeling.

Madara was techinically his great-uncle by his great-grandfather and his much younger mistress and was only twenty years old than his father despite his younger appearance. It seemed Fugaku wasn't the only Uchiha that couldn't keep it in his pants.

"He's technicality my great-uncle," said Sasuke. "He runs the shipping company and various other shell companies my dad took over in his thirty year reign as the company head."

"Great man, your father," said Madara. "He turned your grandfather's business into an empire."

"You mean he bought and blackmailed smaller businesses to expand his," said Itachi walking up. He nodded a greeting toward Naruto. "Naruto, how's the training going?"

"Sasuke got her to sit," said Naruto happily.

"Once," said Sasuke standing up and walked to Madara. "Uncle."

"Sasuke," said Madara reaching toward Sasuke to shake his hand when a growl stopped him. He looked down to see Aoi growling at him. "I see you've got yourself a guard dog."

"Yes," said Sasuke. "This is Naruto. He's helping me train her."

"Sir," said Naruto shaking Madara's hand.

"Naruto, pleasure to meet you."

"Why are you here, uncle," asked Itachi. Sasuke could immediately see his brother go on the defensive. He was curious as to why.

"I came to see my long-lost nephew," said Madara. "I am family."

"After two months, you see him now," said Itachi. "At least Mom had an excuse. What's yours? Business?"

"Yes, Itachi, business," said Madara with a glare to Itachi. "Just because a long-lost relatives comes back from the dead doesn't mean the world stops turning. Someone had to step in while you reacquainted yourself with you brother." He turns to Sasuke, who didn't like the look in his black eyes. "Now, Sasuke, there is a second reason for this visit..."

"Of course there is," said Itachi under his breath.

"Might we have a word in private," said Madara.

Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed Sasuke by the arm and steered him toward the house.

"Madara, wait a minute," Itachi called after them.

"It'll only be a minute," said Madara and lead Sasuke inside.

He lead Sasuke inside and into Itachi's study. Aoi following closely behind Sasuke. Madara closed the door,leaving Aoi behind the door, and gestured toward a chair. Aoi whined and scratched at the door.

"Sit," he said.

Sasuke sat down in a chair and Madara sat behind Itachi's desk. Sasuke eyed his uncle suspiciously. He may not have been well acquainted with his great-uncle, but he knew that he was someone to be wary of.

"Sasuke, as you know, the Uchiha's have a vast number of shell company's that needs a lot of managing," said Madara.

"Yes," said Sasuke almost hesitantly.

"As such, it's the job of the youngest Uchiha to manage the companies. I want to start training you to manage them. Particularly the shipping company, Uchiha's original company.

Sasuke looked at his uncle in shock. Uchiha Corp. had moved from a shipping company to a security firm decades ago, but still owned the shipping company. When business expanded, they bought and sold over a hundred companies. Now, his uncle was telling him he had to manage one.

"I'm sorry, Uncle, but I'm afraid I can't. I just gotten back after ten years and my new charity will take up a lot of my time. Plus, there's my education to finish..."

"All well and good, but you need to focus on your future. Your charity is a fine hobby, one that would be a good reputation for the family, and you're smart enough to learn on the job. You're education will be completed with actual business experience, not some classroom simulation."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at his uncle. Madara almost sounded like everything was decided. He didn't know a lot about his great-uncle, but he didn't like the controlling tone in his voice.

Standing, he fixed Madara an authoritive stare.

"If there's one thing ten years on the street taught me, it's when to pick my battles," he said. "I've only been back for a month, and as such, I'm not ready to start working in a large corporate enviroment. I would much rather take my time and find out what I want to do with my life, instead of what others thing I should do. If I do change my mind, I will let you know."

Without hearing his uncle's protests, he walked out of the room. Aoi immediately following him. Sasuke didn't have to walk far until he ran into Itachi giving him an approving look.

"Watch yourself around him, Sasuke," said Itachi. "That man has the mind of a snake."

"You don't have to tell me twice," said Sasuke.

Sasuke walked out of the house to find Naruto playing a game of tug-a-war with Kyuubi with what looked like a piece of rope knotted at both ends. At the sight of the game, Aoi run over to join in and Naruto letgo of the rope to let the two dogs play. He turned to Sasuke as the raven walked up.

"What did he want?" asked Naruto.

"Talk about my part in the family business, not that I want anything to do with it."

"Why not," asked Naruto. "Wouldn't that be what's expected of you?"

"Exactly, and that's why I'm not. My father threw me away when I was twelve. Why should I be what they think he wanted of me? It's time I choose what I want to do."

"Like helping the strays and homeless?" asked Naruto. "Some would say it's a fruitless endeavor."

"But that doesn't mean that it's not needed," said Sasuke thoughtfully. "All I saw, all I've expierenced. People have died and no one had done anything about it. It's not right. I want to make a place where the homeless can go to feel safe and get help, and I want to help strays find homes because every dog deserves a home."

"I believe that too," said Naruto, petting Kyuubi who had joined the two men with Aoi. Aoi whimpered to be picked up and Sasuke obliged, holding the puppy under her rump and an arm around her waist.

Sasuke looked at the blonde and still marveled at the blonde's abilitiy to see the good in the world despite his job. After spending months with him, Sasuke knew that Naruto became a cop to protect the good people.

"Do you want to have coffee sometime?" he asked before he could stop himself. Naruto looked at Sasuke in surprise before smiling and nodding.

"I'd love to," he said.

 **TBC**


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Naruto walked into the coffee house and looked around. It was a pleasant looking place with a fair amount of customers despite the early afternoon. Soft music played through speakers to relax the diners as they drank and ate snacks.

He was meeting with Sasuke for their bi-weekly coffee. Originally unsure, he was now glad that he agreed. He liked being with Sasuke and talking to him. It was easier than his previous boyfriends and he was easier to be around. A couple of his ex-lovers couldn't handle being with a cop that would run out the door at all hours of the day and night or had such a close relationship with his dog. He even dated a veternarian that was jealous that Kyuubi was getting more attention than him.

Naruto didn't mean to ignore his ex-boyfriends, but he guessed that they didn't grab his attention as much as they wanted. Sasuke was different though. He didn't mind that Naruto paid more attention to the dogs. In fact, he played with the dogs alongside Naruto. Even at the shelter he played with the puppies and smaller dogs.

Sasuke had a strange understanding with the dogs. They seem to congregate around him and obey his every command, except for the puppies. They never listen to anybody. He brought Aoi in a couple of times to train and get ussed to other dogs. Aoi's training was coming along and Sasuke was gaining confidence as an owner.

For the last couple of weeks, Naruto had been working with a puppy to train to be his new K-9 partner. The dog's name was Toboe, which Naruto found slightly ironic since the puppy loved to howl over every little thing. Toboe was only a temporary until Kyuubi's puppies were born and old enough to be placed in training.

He spotted Sasuke easily. Even though it was one of the few times he didn't have Aoi with him, he was recognizable by his hair and relaxed posture. Smiling, Naruto walked over to Sasuke and sat down. Sasuke smiled back.

"Naruto, how was work?" asked Sasuke. "Toboe still playing with the dummy?"

Naruto laughed.

"Yeah," he said. "He still hasn't learned that he's supposed to attack him, not chase."

Sasuke laughed.

"Puppies."

Naruto placed and order to the waitress and turne dback to Sasuke.

"Speaking of puppies, how's Aoi?"

"She finally sat when I told her too," said Sasuke proudly. Naruto nodded happily.

"See, I told you. Show her who's top dog."

"Excuse me, Mr. Uchiha."

They looked up to see a reporter with a digital recorder nearly shoved under Sasuke's nose.

"The country wants to know, where have you been for ten years?" asked the reporter. "Most people suspect rehab, but others say criminal underground."

Sasuke stammered. Itachi had been very good at keeping the press happy by telling everyone how much Sasuke had recovered and that he wasn't speaking of his past, which was mostly true. Sasuke never spoke to Itachi or Konan about what happened and both accepted it, although Itachi did look like he wanted to learn more. With Fugaku, they learned early on that the answer they were given was the answer they were going to get.

Sasuke hoped to someday tell Itachi at least an abbreviated version of what happened. His brother deserved that much.

Sasuke opened his mouth to tell the reporter to leave, but Naruto spoke first.

"Why don't you just leave him alone?"

Sasuke turned to Naruto in surprise. The blonde looked at the reporter in annoyed anger.

"Excuse me," said the reporter, as if just realizing Naruto was there. "And you are?"

"A very good friend of Sasuke's and you're disturbing our coffee," said Naruto.

"The people have the right to know..."

"But not by interrogating the man," said Naruto. "If Sasuke had something to say about the time he was away, then he would say so."

The reporter ignored Naruto and turned to Sasuke.

"There are rumors that you have been in a mental institution or even rehab. Is that true?"

"Did I mention I'm a cop," said Naruto. "I can have you arrested for disturbing the peace."

"That's false imprisonment."

"My peace. Now get going before I call my collegues. I'm really not looking forward to the paperwork."

The reporter looked to argue some more, but the look of annoyance in Naruto's face was enough for him to leave in a huff.

"Could you really do that?" asked Sasuke after the reporter left.

"It's a grey area," said Naruto. "I hate reporters. Vultures."

"Yeah," said Sasuke laughing softly. "Thanks for making the reporter go away."

Naruto watched Sasuke take a sip of his coffee. Something in his voice made Naruto guess that it wasn't the first time that had happened.

"How many times has that happened?" he asked.

"This would be the eighth. I swear they wait outside my house to swoop in and interrogate me for a story."

"Like I said, vultures."

Sasuke looked at Naruto thoughtfully. Naruto and Itachi were the only ones that didn't continually ask what had happened to Sasuke during the ten years he had been gone. He kenw that Kanon wanted to know as well, but she never said anything either, probably because Itachi asked her too.

"Why haven't you asked me what happened?" asked Sasuke.

"Well, you said it didn't you?" said Naruto. "You were in a bad place and needed to get your head together. Seems like you did."

"But, as a cop, I'm sure you're curious."

"Oh, I'm more than curious, but if you don't want to tell me, you don't have to."

Sasuke hesitated for a long time before speaking.

"Let's take a walk."

Ordering a cup to go, they walked out of the café and into a nearby park. They sat on a bench and Naruto waited for Sasuke to speak again. It was several minutes before Sasuke spoke again, the coffee in his hands going cold, undrunk.

Sasuke had to spend several minutes trying to construct a plausible story that wouldn't make him sound crazy, because no matter how a person could spin it, saying that a sorceroress had turned you into a dog for ten years made you sound crazy.

"I was on the street for a while," he said. "Scrounged in dumpsters for food, curled up in abandoned sewer tunnels to keep warm. I was just too ashamed to return home. I thought my family was better off if I was gone.

"Your family loves you," said Naruto.

"I know, but I was so angry back then and I wanted nothing to do with the, so I ran. By the time I wanted to go home, I couldn't."

"Why?" asked Naruto.

Sasuke shrugged.

"Stupid stuff at the time. I believed they wouldn't want me to, plus I had started working for a crime gang."

Naruto gaped.

"Why?" he asked.

"Got to eat somehow, and it wasn't like I had much of a choice. Working for them meant I had a roof over my head and lived another day."

"Did they...?"

"They treated me about as well as any of their employees," said Sasuke. "They didn't know they had Sasuke Uchiha working for them. If they did, they'd have ransomed me off, not force me to fight for them."

"How did you escape?"

"A police raid. One second I was fighting this hulk and the next, there was shouting and shooting. All I could think about was escaping. By the time I realized I was shot, I was already far away from there."

"That's awful," said Naruto. "I'm glad we caught the guys."

Sasuke smiled at him appreciatively.

"Me too," he said.

Naruto smiled back. He didn't like the sad look in Sasuke's eyes.

"Let's talk about something else," he said. "Like...your favorite movie?"

That was how they started talking about the difference between movies and the books they were based on. Sasuke says the Lord of the Rings books was better, but Naruto liked the movies.

"Well, it would help if you had read the books," argued Sasuke teasingly.

"It's not my fault the guy spent three pages talking about a leaf. A leaf! And what was with the grammer? I couldn't understand two words!"

"It's called Middle English, doofus."

The discussion went to science fiction and which movie or show was better.

"Please, at least mine made sense," said Sasuke. "A team goes through a portal and fight alien bad guys. Yours is about an average person cleaning up the messes of geniuses. And I bet half of their science is made up."

"Maybe, but you have to admit mine is funnier, especially the episode where the bank was missing."

Sasuke snickered a little. He had seen a few episodes of the show while staying at Naruto's since it was the man's favorite television show. He did admit it was funny, but he still prefered his.

"Someday, we're gonna have to have a marathon and vote which is better," said Naruto.

Sasuke's chest tightened at the anticipation at the thought of a marathon with Naruto.

"Wouldn't be much of a vote if we vote on own favorites," he said hesitantly.

"But it'll be fun," said Naruto taking a sip of his coffee.

Sasuke ran his finger around the rim of his coffee cup in thought.

"How's Kyuubi," he asked. "Have the puppies been born yet?"

Naruto looked at Sasuke in shock. Another thing that seperated him from his ex-boyfriends.

"Kyuubi's okay, and that's about as good as it can get," said Naruto. "He's getting slower.

Sasuke reached over and placed a hand on Naruto's.

"I'm sorry," he said. "He's a good dog."

"Yeah," said Naruto sadly. "He's my best friend. I don't know how I'm going to go without him."

"You have your friends, and me. Just call and I'll be there."

Naruto smiled at him gratefuly.

"Thanks, Sasuke," he said. "This was nice. We should do this a lot more."

"Too bad your job isn't more time management," said Sasuke sadly.

"Yeah, but I don't mind if it meant spending more time with you."

Sasuke smiled.

"Well, there's the shelter, and our scifi marathon," he said.

"I'll hold you to them," said Naruto.

"You can count on it."

 **TBC**

I would like to thank everyone for their patience with me. As I was attempting to write this chapter, a plethora of new stories came to mind. I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the rest of the story.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

Naruto lead Toboe through the course and carefully watched the pup as he complete the task. Still a puppy with the tendancy to play instead of keeping his attention on the job. It was during these times that he missed working with Kyuubi and Kurogane. Kyuubi had came from a long line of police and military dogs, so it was easy to teach him, and Kurogane seemed to know what Naruto had wanted before even he did.

Remembering Kurogane sent a pang in Naruto's chest. He had beena good dog. It was hard to find a dog like that again. Kyuubi and even Toboe had been breed from military and police dogs, so the job had been ingrained in their breeding, but Kurogane had been a rare find. It wasprobably due to him already being trained as a fight dog, but after Naruto trained that fighting response out of him, he had made a great K-9 dog.

He lead Toboe through the course one last time before giving him a treat and leading him back to his kennel. As he did, Kakashi walks over to him.

"Hey, Naruto, how's he doing?" asked Kakashi, indicating toward the puppy.

"Still thinks he's playing a game then a job," said Naruto. "I don't think he's cut out to be a K-9 dog."

"Well, if anyone can train him up, you can. Meeting in the bullpen. Got some new info with Vice."

Naruto nodded and followed Kakashi to the bullpen. Everyone was already standing or sitting around a rectangular table with Shikamaru typing on his computer.

"What do you got?" asked Naruto.

"The warehouse that hosted the dog fighting and the drugs found was only a sublet for a shell company," said Shikamaru. "But that company had been out of business for the last thirty years."

"Who was the major contributor?" asked Naruto. Neji and Shikamru look between each other a little worriedly. "What?"

"Uchiha Corporation," said Neji.

The pause was all Naruto needed to know what his friends were thinking.

"No," he said angrily.

"Naruto..." said Neji, but Naruto interrupted him.

"No! Sasuke wouldn't do be involved with something like this!"

"Sasuke had been missing for ten years," said Kakashi over the shouting. "You don't know what he could have been doing."

"Not this, and Itachi wouldn't do it either," said Naruto. "There must be someone else using them."

"They are empty warehouses, so technically, anyone could use them for a day or two without anyone noticing," said Shikamaru in thought.

"See, said Naruto gratefully. "Anyone." He turned to Ino. She was their forensic technician as well as their criminal psychologist. "What do you think?"

"Until I meet Sasuke, I can't really say," said Ino. "I only remember Sauske from our school days, and I have to say that it's not a good start."

"He's changed," said Naruto. "I swear, he's changed."

"We'll see," said Kakashi, breaking up the argument. "The fact of the matter is, the warehouse were once owned by Uchiha Corp. the significance of that is still to be determined. Naruto?"

Naruto turned toward the man.

"Since you're close to Itachi, I want you to question him. Take Neji with you."

"Fine," said Naruto reluctantly. He was happy that he was talking to Itachi, but he'd rather have done it himself. Until he got a K-9 partner, he had to put up with a human one.

Naruto turned to Neji. The man had his usual stoic face. Sometimes Naruto swore nothing sets the guy off, but he knew better after spending years with him. The man can face down the barrel of a gun and not bat an eye, but place his friends and family in danger, and he rains down hell.

"Why are you doing this, Neji?" he asked. "Itachi's your cousin."

"Cousin or not, it was his warehouses that came up," said Neji. "If he's innocent, he'll tell us everything he knows. If not, then we'll take him in."

Naruto looked in shock at the man. He was going to take his cousin in if there was even a hint of something hinky. The man was as good at detecting liars as Ino.

They drove to Uchiha Corporation and parked in the garage parking lot. The Uchiha's originally made their money from a shipping business, and as they accumulated money, they expanded to insurance, technology and military contracts. In the past, some of the CEOs had done some shady deals, but nothing that the police could pin them on. So far, since Itachi took over, he cut ties with the less savory parts of the company, and even lead the police to arrest a few. There was no way Naruto would believe Itachi would help people from those circles.

The walked up to the receptionist and flashed their badges.

"Detective Hyuga and Officer Uzumaki here to see Mr. Uchiha," said Neji.

"Just a moment," said the receptionist. She picked up a phone and dialed. "Mr. Uchiha, a Detective Neji and an Officer Uzumaki are here to see you? … Understood." she hung up and turned to them. "You may see him now. Twenty-third floor."

"Thanks," said Naruto with a grin as Neji just walked past.

They walked into the elevator and Neji pressed the button to the floor they needed to go to. Naruto turned to Neji curiously.

"Are you sure it's okay for you to interview Itachi? Him being your cousin and all. Or me, for that matter."

"Kakashi wouldn't have assigned it to us if he wasn't confident," said Neji. "polus, that's why I have this."

He holds up a digital recorder. Naruto thought that would be a good idea. It would look incriminating enough with Naruto talking to Itachi, who had been a volunteer in the search for Sasuke, but for Neji. Usually it would force Kakashi to use someone else, but no one was as good at spotting a liar than Neji.

The elevator door opens and both stepped out. The secretary looked up from the computer she was typing on and nodded to them.

"Mr. Uchiha is expecting you," she said and returned to her computer.

Neji walked to the office door and knocked.

"Enter," said Itachi's voice on the other side. Neji opened the door and entered.

Itachi was different from the corporate business type that Naruto expected to see. For one, he wore his tie loose with a couple buttons undone at the color and his black jacket opened. He turned to them with a smiling of greeting.

"And what can I do for the illustrious law enforcement officers today?" he asked.

"We have a few questions about your warehouses," said Neji.

"My warehouses?" asked Itachi. "I have many. Which ones?"

"The ones by Mizu Port," said Neji "Specifically B12 and K24."

Itachi frowned.

"Why those specifically?" he asked.

"A dog fighting rings was discovered in those warehouse," said Neji. "Plus guns and drugs. Likely human traffiking too."

Itachi sat slowly in his chair.

"Do I need a lawyer?" he asked.

"Did you do somehting wrong?" asked Neji.

Naruto watched the entire exchange. He still couldn't believe that Itachi had anything to do with anything that happened in the warehouses.

"If you feel you need to," said Neji.

Itachi sighed as he paused to think.

"Itachi," Naruto said softly. "If you know anything, please tell us."

Itachi glances at Naruto, but nods.

"Those warehouses are kept for tax purposes," he said. "I actually haven't used them in years. They're supposed to be empty. My uncle manages the import/export business. It was to keep him occupied and out of the main branch's business."

"Do you think he could have used the warehouses?" asked Naruto.

"If he has, then you likely won't find anything," said Itachi. "Madara is very good at his job. It was why I assigned the business to him."

"So he would have covered his tracks," said Neji.

Itachi nodded.

"It's what's made him a shrewed businessman," said Itachi. "He is willing to do anything to get what he wants."

XXXXXX

Sasuke was in the middle of training Ai when Kagome, the household maid, stepped out into the backyard.

"Master Sasuke," said Kagome nervously. Sasuke turned to see her wringing the rag she had been using for her dusting. "Your uncle is here to see you."

"I don't want to see him," said Sasuke without looking was at the local playground with his nanny, Chio. Now, Sasuke was glad he was. He didn't want his nephew anywhere near Madara.

Kagome was about to speak when Madara pushed his way though, shoving the middle-aged maid hard enough for her to stumble. Ignoring the woman's distress, Madara walked up to Sasuke. Ai started growling at him and Madara gave her a disapproving scowl.

"Kagome, are you okay?" asked Sasuke.

"Yes, Master Sasuke," said Kagome still look apprehensively between Sauske and Madara.

"Yes, go back to work. I'll deal with this."

"Sasuke, I've come to hear about your decision," said Madara without and preamble. Sasuke gave him a studious look.

"Decision about what?" he asked.

"Your position in the company."

Sasuke gave his uncle an iritating look.

"My position in the company is the twenty perscent of stock I have in it," said Sasuke. After Yahiko's birth, most of what had been Sasuke's share moved to him. Sasuke didn't have a problem with the decision. He had never wanted to be a part of Fugaku's business anyway and preferred going his own way. If he could, he'd give the rest of the shares to Yahiko, but Itachi insisted on Sasuke having something. Claiming Fugaku owed it to Sasuke.

"Surely that isn't all you want," said Madara. Sasuke didn't like the tone of his voice or the look in his eye. As if he knew exactly what was in Sasuke's mind.

"What do you mean?" asked Sasuke.

Madara smirked.

"Come with me," he said.

Partly curious and mostly annoyed, Sasuke followed his uncle out of the house. Aoi attempted to follow him, but Sasuke motioned for her to stay. She whined, turned in a circle, sat on her hunches and howled as Sasuke walked into Madara's car.

The drive was silent as they drove through town and headed toward the port. At first, Sasuke was confused over where they were going until they pulled into a series of warehouses with the Uchiha logo on them.

"Why are we here?" asked Sasuke as they got out of the car.

"Have you ever wondered how the Uchiha's became the second richest family in the country," asked Madara as they walked into the warehouse.

"Import and export and good investments."

Madara laughed.

"Cute," he said. "It's true we made good investements, but we also did what we had to do to expand the business."

"What we had to do?"

Instead of answering, Madara walked over to a red haired man standing over some boxes. The red head glanced at Sasuke before turning back to Madara.

"Everything all right, boss," asked the man.

"Fine, Sasori," said Madara. "Just showing Sasuke the ropes."

Sasori nods and turned to the crates.

"Latest shipment from our clients," he said.

Madara opened the crates and pulled out what looked to be a doll. Turning it over, he opened the dollup and instead of stuffing, there was a bag of white powder. Sasuke had to school himself to keep the shock from his face.

"You ship drugs," said Sasuke.

"Drugs, guns, people, whatever our clients want," said Madara tossing the doll back into the crate. He turned to Sasuke. "Did you think it was like in the movies? Secret meetings at the docks and the police never know? It's that way because they pay us to look the other way and keep them off camera. They also pay us to ship their product overseas. This is how the Uchiha made money."

"And you want me to continue it," said Sasuke. He was more than ready to refuse and go to Naruto and report it.

"I want you to bring the Uchiha's back to the reputation we once had," said Madara. "The respect and fear of our family before your so-called brother flushed it down the toilet."

Sasuke looked at him in shock.

"You want me to take over the company?" he asked. He shook his head. "I won't."

"Itachi is weak. That illness of his was a sign, but Fugaku was too stupid and proud to see it. He should have let Itachi die. Instead, he survived, married a weak-blooded woman and had a weak-blooded bastard. They don't deserve the hard work we put into the company."

Sasuke's hands tightened into fists at each of Madara's insults. Itachi was anthing but weak, and neither was Konan or Yahiko.

"Forget it," he said and turned to leave.

"If you refuse, I will kill the boy."

Sasuke turned to him in shock.

"You'd kill your own nephew?" he said.

"Please, Sasuke, don't look so surprised," said Madara. "Itachi is leading the company to ruin, and his son will do the same."

"Easy to let something like morals not get in the way," said Sasuke through gritted teeth.

"Morals mean nothing whenit comes to making money. We're the same, Sasuke. Bastard son ignored by our fathers until we're useful. Unlike you, I had to force my father to look at me, but don't worry. Work for me and play your cards right, you'll be running the company someday."

Sasuke was too shocked for words. Madara was thinking of taking over the company with Sasuke as the figure head. Hehad to tell Naruto somehow.

"And if you're planning on telling anyone, especially Itachi or that blonde cop, I will kill the brat," said Madara. "I'll hire another trainer. One that'll make that bitch a proper guard dog. Maybe we'll breed her. She has spunk." Sasuke continued to look at him in shock and Madara smirked. "Don't worry. You'll learn."

He walks away. Sasuke watched him leave in shock and Sasori followed.

 **TBC**


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

Naruto walked toward the café where he and Sasuke would regulary meet for coffee. He was getting a bit apprehensive about meeting with Sasuke now that he was investigating his brother and uncle. He liked Sasuke, a lot, and didn't want to jeopardize his friendship with the man.

No, he didn't just like Sasuke. Like wasn't strong enough. He couldn't wait to see Sasuke, for their coffee dates, training Aoi, or even Friday movie nights. It was so easy being around Sasuke. Two months and the man has become a fixture in Naruto's routine. Naruto thought about asking him out, but pushed that idea aside. The man had just came out of the hospital, surviving God knew whatever kind of torture. He needed time to acclimate back into his new life before dumping a dating proposal at him.

As he neared the café, he smiled when he saw Sasuke at their normal seat. Always on time. Sometimes Naruto would be late, and Sasuke understood because being a cop meant Naruto kept crazy hours, but he always called if he was going to be uber late, and amazingly enough, Sasuke would either wait at the café, or bring coffee at Naruto's so they'd get together there. It didn't matter how late Naruto was, Sasuke would always be waiting with coffee in hand.

Walking into the diner, Naruto was about to yell out when he saw Sasuke's face. The man was deathly pale, paler than usual, and withdrawn. He looked like he hadn't slept in days and the worry lines made Naruto worry.

He hurried over to the booth and leaned against it in concern.

"Sasuke, are you okay? You look sick, man," he said.

Sasuke looked up at Naruto in surprise. He didn't even hear the blonde walk up. Since his time as a dog he had excellent perseption with his surroundings but Madara's threat from a few days ago had shaken him up. He saw the concern on Naruto's face and felt bad for what he had to do next.

"I'm fine, Naruto," he said with what he hoped to be a reasuring smile. "I've just got a lot on my mind."

"Are you sure? You're not sick are you?"

Naruto placed his hand on Sasuke's forehead to check his temperature and Sasuke had to force himself to not lean into it. Instead, he leaned away from the touch and shook his head.

"No. I start working with my uncle in a couple of days and will be very busy. I won't be able to help at the shelter anymore."

Naruto gaped. Of all the things he thought Sasuke would say, that wasn't it.

"But you said you never wanted to work in your family's company. That you wanted to find your own way."

"I know," said Sasuke looking away sadly. "But my uncle made some very good points. It's a family company, and family has to run it."

"But, surely you can take time off for what you want to do," said Naruto. Why was Sasuke acting like this? He loved working with the puppies and he seemed to have a connection with the abused and stray dogs. When the handlers had trouble with calming them down or restraining them, Sasuke just gave them a look and they'd freeze long enough for the handler to work with them. The thought nearly made Naruto laugh. If only he could get Aoi to do the same, but she was a puppy. Puppies don't listen to anybody.

"Can't you compromise?" asked Naruto. "You love working at the shelter. Surely he can understand that?"

"I doubt it. Madara has me on a pretty tight leash. I can't see a way to loosen it just yet." Sasuke closed his eyes and took a deep breathe for what he was about to say next. "In fact, I won't be able to see you for a while either."

"Why?" asked Naruto in confusion. "Won't I still be helping you train Aoi?"

"No, Madara got me another trainer. A professional. His name is Zetsu."

Naruto opened his mouth to argue that he was a professional when a thought struck him.

"Sasuke, is someone threatening you?"

Sasuke looked up and saw a man with conspicuously reading a newspaper, watching him. He had silvery grey hair andbrown eyes. Sasuke knew it was one of Madara's men, making sure Sasuke followed the rules. The man was truly dispicable, using his own nephew and threatening a baby to achieve his own ends. Sasuke wished he could take the man down, but Madara had more resources than Sasuke and had no morals. He had no obligation to the family except what he interperets and cared for nothing except achieving his own ends. During his time on the street, Sasuke had learned how to identify people like that and avoided them when he could.

Sasuke wished he could use those lessons now, but he had to protect Itachi, Konan and Yahiko. He didn't know if Itachi knew about Madara's dealings, but he couldn't take the risk, and by the way Madara spoke, Itachi likely didn't. If Itachi had known, he would have put a stop to it long before now. As smart as Sasuke was, Itachi was smarter. If anyone could stop Madara, it was him.

Sasuke stood and looked sadly down at his friend.

"I'm sorry, Naruto," he said.

He walked out of the diner. Each step he took felt like lead, making him want to turn around and tell Naruto everything, but if he did, then Naruto and everyone in the diner would be at risk. He couldn't take that chance.

Sasuke had no doubt Madara would go through with his threats. Growing up, he saw very little of Madara, but the few times he was mentioned, Fugaku had gotten an anxious look to his eye and looked like he was going to jump out of his skin. If Madara was someone that scared fearless Fugaku, Sasuke was sure that Madara was not someone who heard "No" as an answer.

Sasuke paused outside the diner and looked through the window to Naruto. Out of everything Madara ordered him to do, cutting ties with the blonde hurt the most. He turned and walked down the street.

Naruto satin the booth deep in thought, something most people would be shocked to hear, but being an officer meant connected dots and that took a lot of thinking, and right then, he had his gears on overdrive.

Sasuke was pulling away from his friends and working for an uncle he barely knew. Naruto was good at reading people, and although Sasuke had been the hardest he had ever read, he seemed nervous, devistated, and scared.

Naruto went over their conversation. Sasuke said Madara had him on a "tight leash". That probably meant Madara was holding something against Sasuke, but what? There wasn't much that everyone didn't already know about Sasuke, unless it was something that happened while he was on the street. He only spoke a little about that time and nobody pushed. If that was it, Sasuke would have said something, so whatever Madara's threatening Sasuke with was very important.

Placing a bill on the table, Naruto left with more questions than answers, and very worried for his friend.

XXXXXX

Sasuke walks down the street a block before stopping and turning to the man following a few feet behind him.

"I suppose now you'll report to Madara that I'm obeying his orders?" he asked.

"My job isn't to make sure you obey Madara's orders," said Hidan. "My job is to make sure you don't run away."

"And if I did run away?"

"I take care of problem."

From the look on the man's face, Sasuke knew the man was completely serious. His eyes were dead cold. The eyes of a stone cold killer.

"Madara has my nephew virtually hostaged. I'm not going anywhere."

"Mr. Madara believed you will. You ran before."

Sasuke turned to Hidan and stared him down. Truthfully, Sasuke knew how to deal with punks as a dog and never interacted with killers like Madara and Hidan, but Sasuke knew he wasn't going to let anyone harm his family and friends and that determination shown in his eyes. Hidan didn't flinch, but Sasuke did see slight hesitation in the man's eyes.

"I was running from my father, and I'm done running. Stay away from my friends and family or you will see exactly what I learned on the streets."

XXXXXX

Itachi stared at the far wall of his office in thought. Sasuke had just announced that he was moving out of the house and into an apartment of his own. For the last three months, he watched Sasuke slowly turn back into the happy boy Itachi remembered from their childhood, but with the experience of an adult. He didn't know what experiences Sasuke had on the streets, and Sasuke seemed intent on not speaking of it, but what Itachi did know was that whatever happened opened Sasuke's eyes and made him into a better person. He had been open and talkative. Something that Sasuke hadn't done since the truth of his birth came out. Itachi was happy to find out that it was partly Naruto Uzumaki's fault that Sasuke was opening up more.

But over the last few days, he suddenly became distant. Not like he had before, but in a way that worried Itachi. What was even stranger was that he barely let Yahiko out of his sight, even when he was with Itachi or Kanon. Something had scared him over Yahiko's safety.

Itachi didn't become a capable CEO after liquidating his father's less than savory businesses by being stupid. He knew when Neji and Naruto came in asking about his uncle and shell companies, something was going on.

"Mr. Uchiha, your two o'clock is here."

He presses a button on the intercom.

"Send them in."

The door opened and two men walked in. Well, one was definitely a man, with his spiked brown hair and brown eyes looking around the room as if to find any attackers while the other was a lot younger, long hair pulled back in a bun and a feminine smile on his face. When they first met, Itachi thought the second person was a woman, but the shirt and jeans showed the lack of feminine parts.

"Zabuza. Haku," he said, greeting the two men.

"Mr. Uchiha," said Haku politely as Zabuza merely nodded.

Itachi first hired the duo ten years ago to locate the dirty employees and backstabbers in Uchiha Enterprises and its shell companies. A huge job for two people, but it turned out their street network was large and in less than three months, they gave Itachi a detailed list and files on each employee doing illegal activities.

He had also hired them to search for Sasuke, but that had came up empty. Not that he blamed them. Apparently, Sasuke had became very good at hiding himself.

Itachi handed them a file.

"This is a list of all the warehouses and shell companies abandoned, but still connected to, Uchiha Corp," said Itachi. "I want every person connected to them monitored and every information reported back to me. I understand this is a big job..."

"Very big," said Haku. "It will require all of our resources and more."

"Which is why I will pay you five times your current rate," said Itachi. "And double for each new information you give to me."

Haku and Zabuza glanced at each other. Itachi waited for their silent conversation before Haku turned back to him and nodded.

"Agreed," said Haku. He was the one who usually did all the talking. He took the folder and they turned to leave.

"One more thing." They turned back to Itachi. "I'll pay you ten times for information on Madara Uchiha."

"Your uncle?" said Haku and looked at Zabuza curiously before turne dback to Itachi. "Why?"

"Family business," said Itachi. Haku nodded and walked out. Itachi waited until they left before breathing the rest of the sentence. "And I hope to God I'm wrong."

 **TBC**

Sorry for such a late update. I just moved and still getting used to the new place and a new job. I'll update each chapter as soon as I can and thank you for your patience.


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